EU defense – EU top diplomat Kaja Kallas says Europe’s defense industry is scaling up too slowly, citing procurement rules and member-state stock demands.
Europe’s promised defense buildup is running into a familiar bottleneck: the industry is not ramping up fast enough for what governments are asking for.
Kaja Kallas, the European Union’s top diplomat, said Tuesday she is frustrated with the bloc’s pace in scaling up its defense industry. The EU plans to pour an additional $940 billion into defense efforts by 2030, but Kallas said the results have not matched expectations.
Speaking to a reporter in Brussels, she said she shares the same feeling of urgency.. European production has increased in certain areas, including ammunition lines, air defense capabilities, and other critical functions.. Yet, in her view, this is not translating into the broader industrial acceleration that member states need.
Kallas pointed to a second driver behind the gap between plans and delivery: each EU member state is simultaneously requesting more stock. That creates pressure not only on factories, but also on purchasing rules, coordination, and how quickly orders can be placed and fulfilled.
One particular sticking point, Kallas said, is the Procurement Directive.. She described it as an example being raised that “really needs to move faster.” The directive is an EU law designed to push member states to open their defense contracts to manufacturers across the bloc rather than rely mainly on domestic suppliers.
While the goal is to make the EU’s defense network more “fair” and reduce unnecessary duplication. the law has faced criticism over bureaucracy.. Kallas suggested the administrative and regulatory weight of implementation is part of why the promised acceleration has been harder to achieve than anticipated.
Defense firms, she said, have also raised concerns about unclear rules. Kallas described a situation where each country tries to order equipment and ammunition based on its own needs, which can lead to uneven requirements across borders.
“In this context,” the industry’s message, as Kallas relayed it, is that operating across 27 different national approaches is difficult.. Firms face different rules everywhere. and even where standards exist. each member state adjusts them. producing orders that do not align cleanly.. That makes it harder to produce in a coordinated way rather than on fragmented, country-by-country specifications.
Kallas acknowledged that some issues have been addressed but insisted there is still “a lot to do.” Her remarks underscore a central tension in Europe’s rearmament push: governments are signaling urgency, while the systems that govern procurement and industrial scaling have not fully caught up.
The EU has previously outlined spending goals tied to rearmament.. In March 2025, the bloc said it hoped each member state would increase defense spending to 1.5% of GDP by 2030.. It also signaled it would loosen fiscal rules to enable an additional $762 billion in spending over the next four years and set up a $176 billion loan program aimed at joint defense projects.
That broader package is meant to help Europe rearm amid fears of war with Russia.. However. Kallas’ comments highlight that implementation details remain complicated. including how the money would be allocated and who would ultimately pay.. Brussels sets much of the direction. but each EU country still decides how much to devote to defense and where to channel funds.
Against this backdrop, the EU is also watching how competitors are funding their own military capabilities.. The United States is set to spend $962 billion on its military in its 2026 fiscal year, which ends on September 30.. The Trump administration has also indicated a desire to increase the defense budget to $1.5 trillion in the 2027 fiscal year.
For European industry, these cross-border comparisons matter beyond politics.. If demand keeps rising while procurement rules remain slow or inconsistent. factories may struggle to plan output. secure inputs. and maintain momentum across product lines.. In practical terms, that can translate into delays that ripple from planning to deliveries.
It also places added importance on whether EU procurement modernization can deliver the coordinated purchasing environment that companies say they need.. If member-state requirements continue to diverge. the industry may find it harder to scale production efficiently even when funding commitments are large.
Meanwhile, Kallas’ frustration points to a wider challenge for the bloc: turning spending targets and legal frameworks into operational output.. The EU can announce major financial envelopes and targets. but the industrial ramp-up depends on procurement speed. clarity of rules. and alignment across member states—areas where she said Europe still has work to do.
Kaja Kallas EU defense spending Procurement Directive defense industry ramp-up ammunition production air defense EU fiscal rules