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— Parliamentarians want to dispatch military hardware that was impounded near Libya to Ukraine.
— Germany will send military equipment worth €1.4 billion to Kyiv.
— A maritime lobby group has laid out the principal trends in naval defense to inform future EU financing programs.
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GETTING SEIZED ARMS TO UKRAINE: Members of the European Parliament will press EU countries to send seized military hardware to Kyiv, according to research published today by Dutch TV program RTL Nieuws and shared with POLITICO.
MEPs want to find a practical use for 146 armored vehicles confiscated last year in two operations by the EU’s IRINI naval mission within efforts to enforce a U.N. arms embargo on Libya.
Who’s in? Dutch liberal lawmaker Bart Groothuis is leading the effort and has asked MEPs to sign a letter, seen by Morning Defense, by the end of business on Thursday. “We call upon you to transfer the seized vehicles of the IRINI operation, and similar military equipment or ammunition from this or other EU operations, to Ukraine,” the letter reads. Signatories include France’s Nathalie Loiseau — chair of the Parliament’s defense subcommittee — and Belgian MEP Guy Verhofstadt, both from the Renew Europe group.
Two down, 25 to go: Groothuis told me he had spoken to two ambassadors who were “both very enthusiastic and said it’s very creative,” but declined to disclose which EU countries were on board. EU heads of state and government will discuss further military aid to Ukraine during a Council summit in Brussels at the end of the week.
Targets: On Friday, Groothuis’ letter will be sent to member states from the Council’s Political and Security Committee (PSC), which runs security policy, and the European Peace Facility Committee, which administers off-budget EU funding disbursed to Ukraine. A copy will also be sent to the commander of the naval mission. “Because it’s outside the EU, the PSC has a mandate about what should happen with [the weapons],” Groothuis explained, adding the commander will also provide input. “His advice will be important.”
American precedent: With the U.S. planning to send ammunition seized from Iran to Ukraine, the Dutch lawmaker sees an opportunity for Europe to do the same. “Because the U.S. is doing it, so why can’t we? It’s all about political will,” he told Morning Defense. “Libya is actively lobbying in the UN to get those armed vehicles back in Libya, and I think it’s the worst possible solution.”
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EU: The European Parliament’s subcommittee on security and defense meets today.
FRANCE: The National Assembly’s defense committee discusses the 2024 budget.
**A message from ASD: Manufacturing modern defence equipment requires a secure supply of critical inputs. Even relatively small products such as portable anti-tank weapons need hundreds of microchips. And the latest generation of fighter jets contain up to 420kg of rare earth elements. Learn more.**
BERLIN BOLSTERS UKRAINIAN AIR DEFENSES: Ukrainian PM Denys Shmyhal announced on X, while at the German-Ukrainian Business Forum, that German preparations for a winter aid package are underway, adding that it includes “air defence equipment.” The aid is valued at €1.4 billion, according to Shmyhal — and is tailored to help the country withstand an anticipated Russian pummeling this winter.
Iranian missiles incoming: Last winter saw widespread attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure across the country, which were intended to demoralize civilians. While recent months have been relatively quiet by comparison, recent reporting indicates that Russia will leverage a lapse in U.N. Security Council resolutions against Iran’s missile program to stockpile missiles from Teheran in a repeat of last winter.
Preparing the defenses: For now, Ukraine is prioritizing air defense stocks, such as ammunition for German-supplied Gepard air defenses and Patriot air-defense missiles, to blunt the anticipated Russian barrages, which are expected to be more numerous than last year. Speaking at the forum, German Chancellor Olaf Schulz said that both Israel and Ukraine “have our unbreakable solidarity.”
DEFENSE JV: As previously reported by Morning Defense, the leaders of Germany and Ukraine on Monday announced the formation of a joint venture between Rheinmetall, a German defense firm, and its Ukrainian counterpart Ukrobornonprom, at the German-Ukrainian Business Forum. Rheinmetall will hold a 51 percent stake in the company, while Ukroboronprom, a state defense concern, will hold the remaining 49 percent, according to a Rheinmetall press release.
MARITIME LOBBY GROUP LISTS PRIORITIES: Sea Naval — a subgroup of the Shipyards’ & Maritime Equipment Association of Europe — has identified navel ship greening efforts, the development and integration of new weapons onboard, the development of large to extra-large USVs (i.e. naval surface drones) in fleets, and joint education and training at the European level as the main “naval defense trends,” according to a paper shared with Morning Defense. The paper is aimed at EU institutions such as the Commission and the European Defense Agency to highlight the most relevant areas for future EU financing programs.
NEW MARITIME SECURITY STRATEGY: The Council on Tuesday approved the bloc’s strategic objectives for maritime security, which emphasize cooperation with partners, including NATO, as well as the protection of critical maritime infrastructure such as gas pipelines and undersea telecom cables. According to the document, the EU should also lead live maritime exercises and enhance the bloc’s military capabilities, “involving industry as appropriate.” Capitals will now implement the strategy and assess results in three years.
HIMARS FOR LATVIA: The U.S. government notified Congress of a foreign military sale to the Baltic country on Tuesday. Latvia is looking to buy six M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems, also known as HIMARS, and related equipment for about $220 million.
SWEDISH GRIPENS UPGRADES: Saab received an order from Sweden’s Defense Materiel Administration (FMV) for “designing new development and simulation environments for Gripen C/D.” The order also stipulates support for “harmonization” between Gripen variants. The FMV said the order, valued at €49.3 million, includes “supplementary orders” for hardware and equipment.
Though the Gripen C/D is currently the backbone of Sweden’s air power, Stockholm recently took delivery of the first series-production Gripen E, an outwardly similar fighter jet that incorporates more advanced avionics and electronics and a higher performance engine into its slightly larger airframe.
NEXT-GEN BATTLE TANK: Connectivity will be key for the next generation of battle tanks, France’s army chief, General Pierre Schill, told BFM Business in an interview. “It’s a question of being able to link equipment together, to exchange, collect and analyze data in command posts, so as to be able to make decisions faster than the enemy,” he explained, adding that a balance must be found between firepower, protection, mobility and invisibility.
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INTA BACKS MANDATORY FIREARMS TRACKING: Lawmakers on the Parliament’s trade committee (INTA) signed off on their version of a law that would require countries to monitor the import and export of firearms. The reform was born in 2022 of the Commission’s desire to tighten gun control and deploy digital tracking and licensing systems to get a handle on how many illicit guns are out there.
INTA passed the report on Tuesday by a vote of 26 to 2 with three abstentions. The plenary will vote on the position in November.
More to come: This is just the start, as the rules foresee the launch of electronic databases; eventually, components will also need to be tracked so that “ghost guns,” which use reassembled parts to skirt tracing, can be addressed as well.
Did you know? The Parliament estimates that some 35 million illicit firearms are within the EU and available for civilian use. “Around 630,000 firearms are listed as stolen or lost in the Schengen Information System,” the committee said in its press note.
Keeping tabs: “All unregistered firearms could, in the worst case, be used for a mass shooting,” said Bernd Lange, INTA’s chair and rapporteur. “The more illegal weapons are available, the easier it is to get hold of a weapon to commit a crime.”
Circle back: MEPs are calling on the Commission to produce an annual public report on the firearms trade covering both imports and exports, rather than keeping the data secret.
US ARCTIC STRATEGY: The White House has released an implementation roadmap for its new Arctic strategy that details how the Pentagon will invest in port infrastructure, airfields and satellite stations in Alaska — in addition to Norway, Finland, Sweden and Iceland — over the next decade, our U.S. colleagues report. The plan, published this week, has been cooking for some time, pushed along by lawmakers with an eye on the High North as sea ice melts and Russia and China send shipping and military assets into the region.
BALTICCONNECTOR: Finnish authorities said on Tuesday they suspect that Chinese vessel Newnew Polar Bear caused the rupture in the Balticconnector gas pipeline earlier this month, after finding an anchor on the floor of the Baltic Sea during a preliminary investigation. The object — which weighs 6,000 kilograms — was found a few meters from the site of the damage, and is suspected to have caused the leak in the gas pipeline connecting Finland and Estonia. The investigation will now try to determine whether the damage was accidental or intentional.
MIDDLE EAST: U.S. troops in the Middle East are bracing for a “significant escalation” in attacks, according to the Military Times.
CHINA: China has fired its missing defense minister, two months after he disappeared.
THANKS TO: Jan Cienski and Zoya Sheftalovich.
**A message from ASD: The defence industry needs secure and reliable supply of critical raw materials – for which Europe is currently highly dependent on imports from third countries. To reduce the strategic dependence on foreign and non-secure supply sources, we call for a number of measures such as the creation of strategic stocks and the expansion of industrial recycling. Find out more.**
