Remarks by President António Costa at the doorstep ahead of the informal meeting of heads of state or government of 1 October 2025 13:20 Before the start of the informal[...]

Today, we will discuss security and defence, one of the main concerns of European citizens. As you remember, last February we held a brainstorming day on defence - a very important moment to have a strategic discussion on defence.

Since then, we have been doing a lot.

The Commission came up with the White Paper on Defence, the SAFE Programme, and a mechanism to activate the national escape clause to give room of manoeuvre and fiscal space to every member state to invest more in defence.

We have defined nine main priorities, and now we are coming to the discussion on the concrete projects - the most important flagship projects around which we should mobilise our energy and increase our own capacity in defence.

Today, we will have an important political discussion to provide the Commission with political guidance for the upcoming roadmap on defence. With this roadmap, we will have concrete timelines to deliver on the different capabilities. Of course, our security starts with Ukraine, and for this reason we will also discuss how to strengthen our support to Ukraine in its fight for a just and lasting peace, and for our common security.