EU spending on defence research and technology ‘continues to lag’

Average spending on defence R&D is less than half the target amount, agency says

EU countries’ spending on defence research and technology “continues to lag” both the target set for it and a more general recovery in defence spending since the 2007 global financial crisis, the European Defence Agency has warned.

The EDA’s 26 member states—every EU member except Denmark—spent €1.7 billion on defence research and technology in 2019, the agency announced on 28 January, which it said was an increase of 13 per cent on 2018.