EU Army Promises Greater Defence Capability for the Same Money

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron have called for the creation of a “real, true European army”. In a joint study conducted by the Bertelsmann Stiftung and the Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW), Mannheim, researchers had already emphasised the economic benefits of a combined European army. Professor Friedrich Heinemann, head of the ZEW Research Department “Corporate Taxation and Public Finance” and co-author of the study, comments on this matter:

“The defence policy of the EU Member States is highly fragmented and unnecessarily costly. The multitude of different weapon systems and unnecessary parallel structures are creating enormous costs without producing additional benefits that would increase operational capacity. A European army promises greater defence capability for the same money. In large armies, the relation between available soldiers and the total number of armed forces is much better. A European army would help to reap these economies to scale.

Another major advantage is that an EU army would put an end to the free-rider problem in defence policy. Many EU countries are relying heavily on the defence efforts of larger Member States, neglecting their responsibility to finance their own armed forces. A European army would be financed from the EU budget, taking account of the share of the individual Member States in the overall EU gross national income. This would be a fair financing formula for providing the European public good of defence. With their initiative, Macron and Merkel are on the right path towards creating real added value for the European Union.”

For further information please contact

Prof. Dr. Friedrich Heinemann, Phone +49 (0)621-1235-149, E-mail friedrich.heinemann@zew.de