EDA Chief Executive Jiří Šedivý closed the Agency’s 2021 Annual Conference devoted to ‘Innovation in European Defence’ with a call for Member States, and Europe as a whole, to invest more and better in defence innovation “and to do it together”, reflecting a general assessment expressed throughout the conference.
He also expressed the hope that 2022 will become “the year of European defence” and that Europe will take further decisive action to live up to its defence aspirations, also with respect to innovation. “The choice is clear”, he said repeating what many speakers and panelists expressed throughout the day: “Either we innovate in defence or we will become defence irrelevant”.
Main takeaways
Mr Šedivý singled out a number of commonalities expressed during the conference which could serve as the main takeaways of today's event, such as:
- in terms of defence innovation, Europe is clearly stagnating vis-a-vis its main competitors, especially the US but also other global powers. This widening gap could, at some point, put at risk Europe’s interoperability with its partners;
- to catch up, Europe needs to be open to partners both in Europe and outside, also across the Atlantic: “We need complementarity with NATO rather than competition”. Openness also means a readiness to work with civil industry, SMEs and start ups;
- to boost innovation, there is a need for cultural change and a change of mindset throughout Europe’s Ministries of Defence, including a tolerance for failure;
- the final test of European defence innovation will be in its operational output, i.e. the capacity to deliver usable high-end capabilities that are needed by our Armed Forces;
- Europe’s defence relevance will also stand or fall with the robustness, resilience and competitiveness of its defence industrial and technological base, including the security of supply chain;
- EDA’s role in innovation is unique because, under the same roof, it deals with capability prioritisation and development, research and development, industrial synergies and civil-military cooperation as well as support to PESCO, CARD and the EDF. “Innovation is in the Agency’s DNA since its very start”; now, it is the time to use its expertise and experience to bring defence innovation forward in Europe.
EIB Vice-President Kris Peeters: “Hope that next year will be the year of defence”
Conference attendees also witnessed an interesting fire side chat with Kris Peeters, the European Investment Bank’s (EIB) Vice-President. He recalled the Bank’s decision, back in 2017, to launch the ‘European Security Initiative’ with a budget of 6 billion euros of which, so far, 4 billion have already been invested in dual-use projects benefiting to security and defence. 47% of those 4 billion euros have gone into innovation, Mr Peeters said, stressing that the funding was allocated as loans to both Member States and private companies (including start-ups) as well. Even though security and defence are still “sensitive” topics at the EIB which, as a European organisation, “is defending European values”, one should not forget that against the backdrop of increasing threats everywhere, “security and defence are also important values for European citizens”. “If we don’t invest in this sector, we cannot talk about European strategic autonomy, sovereignty or resilience. We must not be naive”, he said. There is a “momentum” to push for more investments in security “and I hope that next year, 2022, will be the year of defence”.
EUMC Chair Graziano: Innovation must respond to military needs
Previously, addressing the Annual Conference for a last time in his capacity of EU Military Committee Chairman, departing General Claudio Graziano, whose mandate will expire end in May 2022 after more than three years, said that European Defence were at an “historical moment with wind of change blowing from everywhere”. Now is the moment for Europe to show “assertiveness and the capacity to adapt” if it wants to play a “responsible role for a sustainable future”: “Either we succeed as a group, or we all fail as a group”. The upcoming Strategic Compass offers the EU an opportunity for aligning its defence tools, also financial, and consolidating its role as a global security provider, the General stated: “If we miss this train of credibility, I’m afraid it will be long before we catch another one, if any at all”. Innovation in defence is of course a key part of this endeavour because it is an indispensable path for Europe towards achieving operation superiority and being able to project power, rapidly and effectively. “In this context, the EU Rapid Deployment Capacity is not just the most tangible sign of a renewed EU commitment, but also a clear demonstration that the EU understands the winds of change”, he said. The defence industry and, in general, Europe’s defence industrial and technological base will be crucial for Europe’s future defence posture. “At the same time, the defence industry can only succeed of it is not undermined by other EU policies such as the possible extension of the EU sustainability taxonomy to social aspects, inter alia. One must be wary of that!”, Mr Graziano stressed. He also called for making sure that defence innovation is driven by the operational needs and requirements of the Armed Forces on the ground; the end-users’ perspective must always be decisive and guide innovation, he said.