The EU is exploring three methods to secure hundreds of billions of euros for defense, according to Bloomberg.

According to Ukrinform, this was reported by Bloomberg citing informed sources.

A new security architecture will begin to take shape at an extraordinary meeting of European leaders on March 6.

Following this, on March 19, the European Commissioner for Defense and Space, Andrius Kubilius, and the EU's chief diplomat, Kaja Kallas, are expected to unveil a new defense-industrial strategy for the bloc.

In the meantime, heated discussions about increasing the bloc's resources for defense are ongoing.

According to sources, the plan for securing funding for defense from European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen consists of three initiatives.

The first initiative aims to allow EU member states to boost spending by relaxing fiscal rules. Some officials believe this could help mobilize at least 160 billion euros.

The second initiative involves ensuring defense spending at the EU level through a new joint instrument. These funds will primarily be used to invest in collective projects in areas such as air defense, long-range capabilities, missiles, drones, and military artificial intelligence.

Some high-ranking EU and member state officials are advocating for the possibility of joint borrowing, but this idea always sparks controversy within the bloc.

The third initiative focuses on relaxing investment restrictions for the European Investment Bank. Currently, it is only allowed to invest in dual-use goods. A change in this policy would lead to additional funding from private banks as well.

According to sources, in addition to these three initiatives, von der Leyen has also proposed the idea of potentially reallocating unspent EU funds, including money collected for the recovery of member states after the COVID-19 pandemic.

As reported by Ukrinform, Poland is suggesting that the governments of the European Union interpret the term “defense investments” more broadly, which would allow countries to increase their defense spending without disciplinary sanctions from the bloc itself.