Last Friday's meeting on the proposed EU "drone wall" was a "productive initial exchange," and the next steps involve discussions with other EU member states in a broader format, said Tom Renier, spokesman for the European Commission on defense issues, during a briefing on Monday, UNN reports.
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According to him, the European Commission "fully shares the sense of urgency." "That is why this meeting was organized with seven frontline member states, with Denmark, Slovakia, Hungary, and Ukraine. After these discussions, I mean, Commissioner Kubilius also had the opportunity to explain this. It was a productive initial exchange, where we also learned a lot from Ukraine, Ukraine's capabilities regarding drone warfare," he pointed out.
Now, as for the next steps, this needs to be discussed with other member states in a broader format. This will be done in October within the framework of the Council (EU) summits
He noted that European Commissioner for Defense Andrius Kubilius mentioned a one-year timeline for the initiative's implementation and stated that "we need to be realistic." "Now we will work closely with our member states to ensure that we can do this," emphasized the European Commission spokesman.
He also reminded that NATO representatives were present at the meeting on Friday. "Therefore, we have always said that it is true that, of course, our cooperation with our NATO partners remains," Renier emphasized.
Regarding the issue of shooting down any intruders, he was cautious in his response.
"I would be very careful and again, I would give the member states the leading role when it comes to their national competence. Much of this remains in the hands of the member states," Renier stressed.