France challenges German-led Euro air defense plan

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
19 Jun 2023 15:55

The Defense meeting called for by France seeks to offer an alternative to the German-led Euro air defense plan known as European Sky Shield initiative.

French President Emmanuel Macron, left, flanked by French Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu visits the International Paris Air Show, Monday, June 19, 2023, in Le Bourget, north of Paris (AP)

A European Defense Ministers meeting will be hosted on the sidelines of the Paris Air Show, on Monday, after France felt snubbed by a German-led plan that isolated its manufacturers.

French Defence Minister Sebastien Lecornu called for the meeting and announced that it will not only include about 20 EU members but will also include the European Commission's internal market chief Thierry Breton.

While German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius had been reluctant about joining his EU counterparts, he confirmed his attendance a French government source told AFP.

Lecornu explained, in a piece he wrote for Le Figaro, that "It has become imperative for Europe to build an independent strategy for defending its airspace," and warned of "new threats".

Earlier in October, a meeting was called by Germany in which the German-led European Sky Shield plan was launched, and of which 16 NATO countries and Sweden had planned to use German, US, and Israeli equipment.

At the time, France was not among those who joined the initiative given that Paris aimed to promote its own medium-range anti-air missiles which meant that at stake, were massive contracts. According to media sources, Germany and France alone have been anticipated to spend on air defense about 10 billion euros by 2030.

Breton: EU must shift to wartime economy

A shift to a wartime economy model in the EU has become imminent according to Breton, who argued, earlier in March, that the European defense industry must shift "to a wartime economy model to cater for our defense production needs."

Breton explained that with the support of EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, the two were "determined to support the production ramp-up of the European defense industry to face the realities of a high-intensity conflict — starting with the question of ammunition."

According to Foreign Policy, Brenton and Borell have been working "on a plan to use €500mn of EU money to expand arms production by financing factory expansion, eliminating supply bottlenecks and placing big orders to stimulate investment."