Elly Schlein, the leader of the
largest member of the opposition, the centre-left Democratic
Party (PD), said on Tuesday that
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen's announced
plan to 'rearm Europe' in the face of Russian aggression against
Ukraine which she said could mobilise close to 800 billion euros
was not the right choice for Europe.
"The one presented by von der Leyen today is not the road needed
by Europe.
"The European Union needs common defence, not national
rearmament.
"They are two very different things", said Schlein.
"Von der Leyen's plan, starting from its name, invests on
rearmament" without including a "clear political direction
towards common defence", said the PD leader.
"It highlights a series of tools that would help national
expenditure but without setting conditions on common projects,
on the interoperability of systems", concluded Schlein.
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