Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Grushko spoke about the threats to Russia from EU rearmament

Russia sees risks for itself in the new 800 billion euro European Union (EU) rearmament program, Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko said in an interview with Izvestia.

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This will hit the economy of the association — the amount required for rearmament is four times its annual budget.

"We see the risks, they are quite obvious. The fact is that the military and political subordination of the European Union to NATO has taken place: this follows not only from the practice of cooperation between NATO and the EU, but also from the documents they adopt. The NATO—EU Joint Declaration clearly sets out the intention of the EU itself to become a European pillar of NATO. The Alliance sees Russia as a direct and immediate threat. This postulate has also crept into the political documents of the EU. And we see that the plans to create the so—called autonomous military base of the European Union today are aimed at creating threats primarily to Russia," the diplomat said.

Earlier, the head of the European Commission (EC), Ursula von der Leyen, took the initiative to build up the EU's military potential. In particular, it is planned to increase military spending in European countries by 1.5% of GDP, which will provide 650 billion euros to increase production of equipment. Another €150 billion is planned to be borrowed for the purchase of necessary military equipment.