Boris Pistorius, the German Defense Minister, responded on Wednesday at the Berlin Security Conference to criticisms about the excessive focus on purchasing weapons from domestic producers. He deemed these criticisms incorrect and emphasized that other countries are also in similar situations.
Criticism of Focus on Domestic Industries
Pistorius, in response to Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, Chair of the European Parliament's Defense Committee, stated that Germany relies on purchasing weapons from domestic producers, which undermines European defense cooperation. Strack-Zimmermann had raised the criticism that Germany should focus more on collaboration with its European partners.
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This dispute highlights a fundamental problem in achieving Europe's defense goals. EU member states want to strengthen their armed forces and purchase weapons jointly, but at the same time, governments are inclined to preserve domestic jobs and factories.
Challenges of Defense Cooperation in Europe
According to Brussels' plans, the goal is to reach a minimum of 40% share of joint arms purchases by 2030. The European Union has also launched the SAFE arms loan program worth €150 billion to encourage member states to purchase weapons jointly.
However, national interests continue to hinder the realization of these goals. Many governments prefer that large arms contracts go to their domestic companies. For example, the Polish government has announced that it intends to allocate 89% of the SAFE funds, amounting to approximately €44 billion, to its domestic industries.
Pistorius defended this approach, stating that governments also have a responsibility to protect their economies and industries. In response to Strack-Zimmermann, he said: "Therefore, I reject the criticisms raised in this question. And if there is a criticism, it should refer to all European countries with defense industries, not just Germany."
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