Archive: https://archive.is/2025.03.08-050706/https://www.ft.com/content/76937db3-0b3b-44d4-9005-9709512acd53
A proposed €150bn injection into the EU’s defence industry has become a new flashpoint in a long-standing battle between France and Germany over the continent’s rearmament drive and whether it should include countries outside the bloc.
Spooked by US President Donald Trump’s threats to end generations of American protection, Europe has pledged to increase defence spending dramatically and scale up their domestic capabilities that have withered since the cold war.
Last week the European Commission proposed to raise €150bn that would be lent to capitals to boost their military production. While the broad idea has received unanimous political backing, the details are still being fleshed out, with heavy lobbying over whether the cash could be spent on arms made outside the bloc.
It takes just one state actor that doesn’t play by the rules and it all falls apart. Let’s not be naive because being exploited for this will be extremely unpleasant. I live in Poland which spent over 100 years under Russian occupation. Now we live under American one which is slightly less exploitative but not great either. The cognitive dissonance is strong in our nation after Obama forced us to reset relations with Russia after they invaded Ukraine for the first time lol.
All of us want peace but appeasement has been tried and failed time and time again. Lay down the arms and get steamrolled and then get exploited for another 100 years until another empire inevitably falls? Nah.