THE ISSUE OF FRAGMENTATION IN EU SPACE GOVERNANCE

With the advent of the so-called “space race” era during the Cold War, states started giving major consideration to developing their space capabilities, having realised the many advantages they could bring. Indeed, military operations in space primarily concern satellite-based surveillance, communications, and intelligence operations, thus allowing states to benefit from them as space-related development can, among many things, extend the range and capabilities of communications, improve missile early warning and enhance situational awareness beyond any terrestrial capability.

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Navigating the Evolution of EU Fiscal Rules: A Possible Special Status for Defence Spending?

Amid a paradigm shift in EU economic governance, a draft compromise seen by Euractiv reveals that, under the new Economic Governance Review (EGR), defence spending might be granted special status within European Union (EU) fiscal rules (Pugnet &Allenbach-Ammann, 2023). According to Euractiv, this document, tabled by the Spanish presidency of the EU Council on 3 November 2023, seeks to stimulate member state investment in defence. It is also part of a grand effort to overhaul current EU debt and deficit reduction rules, which were suspended for four years in order to allow increased spending and will be returning in full force in 2024 (Leali & Smith-Meyer, 2023).

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European States Boost Defence Spending

Written by Manel Bernadó European states face a complicated winter. The tide seems to have changed in Ukraine, but the conflict is far from over. Energy prices keep rising and…

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Top100 Defence Companies and the European Industrial Base: Leonardo behind the EU wheel

Last August, the American website DefenseNews released its annual ranking featuring the top 100 defence companies for 2022. With $64,458.00 in revenues in 2021, the list is led by Lockheed Martin which, followed closely by four other American companies, ensures the top five in the United States. Raytheon Technologies has in fact earned $41,852.20 in revenues in 2021, followed by Boeing with $35,093.00. The ranking reports Northrop Grumman at the fourth position with $31,429.00 revenues, while General Dynamics is closing this block with $30,800.00 in 2021. China also proves to be a fundamental presence, covering several positions starting off the sixth place thanks to Aviation Industry Corporation ($30,155.22). The English BAE System secures the seventh position with $25,775.20. It opens the ranking for European companies, even if it is the Italian Leonardo (twelfth position) to lead the European Union market in this sector. Leonardo has performed exceptionally well in 2021, increasing its revenues by 24% since 2020 (from $13,878.35 to $11,173.33). The French Airbus has, on the contrary, slipped to the fifteenth position, registering a loss of 10% compared to the previous year.Previously, the Department of Defense (DoD) said it had allocated $1.77 million for the Open6G industrial-university cooperative. This initiative is part of the ambitious Innovate Beyond 5G program, overseen by the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering.

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BAE System’s CV90 MkIV to be the New IFV of the Czech Republic

On 20 July, the Ministry of Defence of the Czech Republic announced having chosen the CV90 MkIV by BAE Systems Hägglunds as its new Infantry Fighting Vehicle (IFV). The decision comes after the Czech Government cancelled the tender to acquire over 200 new infantry fighting vehicles after two of the three bidders dropped their proposals (Rheinmetall’s Lynx KF41 and GDELS’ ASCOD 42). The Czech Ministry of Defence will thus start negotiations with the Swedish Government to acquire CV90 vehicles. As indicated by Czech Defence Minister Jana Černochová, the participation of the Czech defence industry in their manufacturing will remain a high priority in the negotiation process.

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