New report cautions of EU's dependency on US suppliers in weapons development
The European Union faces the risk of falling behind in defence innovation and the development of advanced weapons systems.
This warning was given in the European Commission's newly published report, called the "Competitiveness Compass". Published on January 29, the document lays out the union's plans on how to regain competitiveness and secure sustainable prosperity, Caliber.Az reports, .
It has identified three main focus areas, among which is the need to reduce excessive dependencies and increasing security.
The report highlights concerns over significantly lower defence investments compared to that of the United States. While Washington is Brussel's most vital defence partner, the new US administration under Donald Trump has repeatedly hinted at a scenario in which the US reduce their defence support to the union citing unfair financial agreements.
"As a result, the EU remains heavily reliant on suppliers from non-EU countries. There is a significant risk that the EU will lag in defence innovation and the development of new advanced weapons systems, leading to negative side effects for dual-use technologies," the document states.
By Nazrin Sadigova