Every single political party is calling for more transparency and coherence in EU arms exports. But as soon as concrete activities and measures are called for, the political actors often do not pull together. As rapporteur for a European Parliament report on arms exports, I have üabout this discrepancy spoken to euractiv.
In the EU, weapons have long since ceased to be produced within a single country. Countries such as France and Germany, for example, jointly produce weapons that are used worldwide. When it comes to exporting these European weapon systems, the member states have agreed on a common position – but they interpret the rules very differently. This leads to an absurd reality:
The reality of EU arms exports
"The decision whether to export a product often lies with the country where, metaphorically speaking, the 'last bolt is tightened'. This can be an incentive to move final assembly to the country with the least restrictive export practices.
That is why I have made it clear to euractiv that with the increasing Europeanization of arms production we also need more common rules for European arms exports. Parliament’s report is an important first step in this direction.
