European Commission Chief Calls for Collective European Arms Purchases

European Union countries have to work together on buying weapons as the United States is no longer a reliable ally, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Tuesday.

Member states need to be able to fully rely on European defense supply chains, especially in times of urgent need. And that means creating an EU-wide market for defense equipment [by 2030].
—Ursula von der Leyen

Von der Leyen laid out a list of plans to rearm Europe and support Ukraine, including a “European Sales Mechanism” to pool member states’ defense orders and jointly produce those weapons. She called on member countries to “buy more European.”

We need a functioning EU-wide network of land corridors, airports and seaports that facilitate the fast transport of troops and military equipment. At the same time, we need to invest in air and missile defense, artillery systems, ammunition and missiles.
—Ursula von der Leyen

The European Commission is set to publish a detailed defense proposal this week with a €150 billion (us$163 billion) fund for member states to spend on defense.

Break from U.S.: While von der Leyen was careful to talk around the topic of relations with the U.S. under President Donald Trump, she said Europe supports the “sovereignty and territorial integrity” of Greenland as part of Denmark. She also said Europe has seen the U.S. “move [its] focus to the Indo-Pacific.”

The speech came the same day Trump held talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin on a peace deal in Ukraine, which excluded Ukraine and Europe. Trump’s efforts to broker a peace deal over the past two months have dramatically strained relations between Europe and America.

Europe’s future: Watch for European nations to cooperate more and more in their efforts to rearm, while moving away from the United States as an ally. Bible prophecy says the Continent is about to become a powerful unified bloc that will play a defining role in world events.

To learn more, read our Trends article “Why the Trumpet Watches Europe’s Ongoing Unification Project.”