Latest news with #rearmament
Russia Today
20 hours ago
- Business
- Russia Today
European NATO states wary of buying US arms
European NATO members have expressed growing unease about increasing their reliance on US weapons amid a sweeping rearmament push, Bloomberg has reported on Friday. During a summit in The Hague this week, NATO states committed to raising military spending to 5% of GDP by 2035 to counter what they described as a 'long-term threat posed by Russia to Euro-Atlantic security' – a claim that Moscow has repeatedly denied. Concerns have reportedly emerged about deepening dependence on the American defense industry, particularly under the leadership of President Donald Trump. According to Bloomberg, leaders fear they could be exposed to greater risks, especially in light of Trump's efforts to improve ties with Russia and past threats to annex allied territory. Boosting reliance on US arms has become 'an increasingly hard sell at home,' the outlet noted. French President Emmanuel Macron has long championed the idea of securing greater defense autonomy for European NATO states, urging the development of a self-sufficient military industrial base. Canada, a key NATO ally, is reportedly reconsidering its involvement in the US-led F-35 fighter jet program and may switch to Swedish alternatives. 'We should no longer send three-quarters of our defense capital spending to America,' Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney stated earlier this month. Copenhagen has also displayed some resistance, telling Washington that American arms deals have become 'politically difficult' given Trump's suggestion that the US annex Greenland, which is currently controlled by Denmark, Bloomberg reported. Unease in the alliance has also been stoked by Trump's move to cut intelligence sharing with Ukraine earlier this year. According to unnamed officials cited by Bloomberg, this decision 'alarmed allies,' as it raised concerns over how much control the US might wield over weapons exports in the event of a crisis. Nevertheless, a lack of viable domestic alternatives continues to bind European nations to US suppliers, according to the outlet. Decades of underinvestment have left Europe's defense manufacturing capacity underdeveloped. As a result, countries will likely keep buying American equipment to meet rearmament targets, particularly as stockpiles have been depleted by shipments of military aid to Ukraine. Moscow has condemned the EU's militarization trend and arms transfers to Kiev, characterizing the conflict as a NATO proxy war. President Vladimir Putin has dismissed NATO's concerns of Russian aggression as 'nonsense,' instead blaming the alliance's expansion and 'aggressive behavior' for escalating tensions.
Bloomberg
a day ago
- Politics
- Bloomberg
Road to French Defense Runs Through Pension Mire
Bonjour et Bienvenue to the Paris Edition. I'm Bloomberg Opinion columnist Lionel Laurent. If you haven't yet, subscribe now to the Paris Edition newsletter. Emmanuel Macron called for Europe to rearm this week, and not for the first time. The French president pushed the continent to get serious on hard power during Donald Trump's first term, with little success. What's changed since is Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Trump's return as a transatlantic wrecking-ball and Germany's awakening under Friedrich Merz after years of strategic slumber. Throw in the complete sidelining of European allies in the Middle East and it's likely defense spending is headed one way: Up.
Times
3 days ago
- Business
- Times
Babcock International profits jump in ‘new era of defence'
Babcock International is fired up for what its chief executive called 'a new era for defence' as the military contractor upgraded its expected earnings for the coming years against already soaring profits. Babcock shares, which have already enjoyed a stratospheric performance in 2025, rose to 11-year highs, up 13 per cent, or 137p better, at £11.70. The £5.8 billion FTSE 100 group has become the UK's second largest defence contractor after BAE Systems, running the naval dockyard in Devonport and maintaining the nuclear submarine fleets, building warships at Rosyth in Scotland, and plugged into multiple support programmes across the armed forces. Its recovery after operational failings and questionable accounting before the Covid-19 pandemic follows the arrival as chief executive of the former Cobham boss David Lockwood, whose five-year rebuild at Babcock has coincided with the UK's biggest commitment to rearmament in decades. The company is also one of Britain's civil nuclear contractors, on site at Hinkley Point for instance, putting it at the centre of the country's investments in low-emission electricity. 'This is a new era for defence,' Lockwood said. 'There is increasing recognition of the need to invest in defence capability and energy security, both to safeguard populations and to drive economic growth. A complex and rapidly changing global context for defence has highlighted the increasing relevance of our specialist capabilities. 'A growing set of opportunities before us … has enabled us to upgrade our medium-term guidance, increase our dividend by 30 per cent and launch a £200 million share buyback programme for the first time in the company's history.' He said the 12 months to the end of March had been a 'pivotal year' for the new Babcock. Revenues were up 11 per cent at £4.8 billion. Operating profits rose 51 per cent to £363 million. Ignoring one-offs, profit margins hit 7.5 per cent, up from 5.4 per cent. • Tempus: Should you invest in Babcock right now? Net cash inflows of £153 million reduced net debt to £373 million and enabled in increase in the dividend from 5p to 6.5p There is much more to come, Lockwood said, for a business that employs more than 23,000 people. He expects average annual revenues to grow by mid-single-digit percentage points. Its medium-term target of an 8 per cent profit margin will be hit this year, and that target is now replaced by a goal of 9 per cent, taking it further away from the 5 per cent profit margins at best of conventional government outsourcing contractors. The projected cash inflows have prompted the decision to start buying back shares, a programme used by companies to underpin the rating of their stock price. Shares in Babcock, alongside its military-facing peers on the stock market, have enjoyed a stellar rise. When defence stocks began to take off after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the response of Babcock shares was muted, with investors uncertain of its turnaround progress. The past six months have been a different story — the shares have more than doubled since the turn of the year.
CNA
4 days ago
- Business
- CNA
Philippe Le Corre on NATO Summit
NATO leaders are at the Hague to discuss a deal to boost defence spending among alliance members. Chief Mark Rutte called on both Europe and the US to meet the challenges of rearmament together to win what he called the "new war of production" against Russia. CNA's Loke Wei Sue speaks with Philippe Le Corre, Senior Fellow on Foreign Policy at the Asia Society and Professor of Geopolitics at ESSEC Business School.
ABC News
4 days ago
- Business
- ABC News
Germany overcomes history and prepares for war
After decades of enjoying peacetime dividends and American protection, Germany is now re-arming in a hurry. Troop numbers in the Bundeswehr had withered since the 1990s and spending dipped well below 2%. But with bellicose Russia on Europe's borders and US support no longer a guarantee, that's all changing. The real question is: are Germans ready to be a military power once again? Guest: Dr Benedikt Franke, CEO of the Munich Security Conference Get in touch: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at
