Deep Dive on the ReArm Europe Plan/Readiness 2030

On March 19th 2025, the Commission presented two documents :

• The ReArm Europe Plan/Readiness 2030
• A White Paper for European Defense – Readiness 2030

According to the European Commission, the ReArm Europe Plan/Readiness 2030 embraces the development of pan-European defense capabilities through new financial resources, while the White Paper outlines a approach to defense and pinpoints necessary investment areas. Think of it as a single package, with the Plan giving the strategy and the White Paper the more granular details on how to realize it.

First, let’s address the ReArm Europe Plan. It aims to release public funding for defense at national level through a new dedicated instrument called SAFE: Security Action for Europe. Its guiding principles are quite simple:

• Buy more,
• Buy better,
• Buy together,
• Buy European: at least 65% of the purchases must be for products coming from EU Member States, EFTA Member States or Ukraine.

Now for the White Paper. It recognizes right from its first line “Europe faces acute and growing threats” on all borders and that “the only way we can ensure peace is to have the readiness to deter those who would do us harm”, it aims to:

• Increase military support for Ukraine,
• Establish a strong and innovative European defence industry,
• Develop the capacity of the member states to execute complex military operations,
• Deter foreign armed aggression,
• Simplify current legislation,
• Prepare for the worst-case scenario.

The key to achieve this objective is investments. In order to acquire the necessary assets in a short timescale and close the defense capability gaps the European Union is suffering of, the Commission proposed a new EU regulation to provide Member States with loans backed by the EU budget, up to EUR 150bn. On top of this, the Commission also proposed to unlock additional flexibility for higher defence expenditure from the Member States, projecting at least an additional EUR 650bn funding capability over the next four years.

In line with Ecu Radio’s stance on Autonomorphosis, the paper also describes the European Industry defense as “too fragmented with dominant national players catering mostly to domestic markets and suffering from under-investment,” aiming to resolve this through a massive ramp-up of European defense industrial production capacity.

Such capacity would be channeled towards the 7 following priority areas, to make Europe ready by 2030:

• Air and missile defense: to protect against a full spectrum of air threat,
• Artillery systems: modern artillery and long-range missile to deliver precise attacks,
• Ammunition and missiles: to stockpile  ammunition and ensure sufficient defense industrial production capacity
• Drones and counter-drone systems: unmanned systems, including aerial, ground, surface and underwater vehicles
• Military mobility: network of land corridors, airports, seaports and other elements to facilitate the transport of troops and military equipment
• AI, Quantum, Cyber & Electronic warfare: military AI and quantum computing to ensure the use of the electromagnetic spectrum, suppress disruptions by opponents and protect the freedom to operate in cyber space
• Strategic enablers and critical infrastructure protection: airlift and Air-to-Air refueling aircraft, intelligence and surveillance, maritime domain awareness, use and protection of space, etc.

And that’s the gist of it. To dive deeper, please find the White Paper here.