Donald Trump’s plan to supply weapons to Ukraine that the European Union will pay is increasing pressure on European officials who are negotiating the funding of the Union’s defense program.

As Bloomberg reports, these discussions fuel harsh negotiations to draw up EU’s next seven -year budget of 1.2 trillion. euro, as the 27 member states are launching a two-year process to reach consensus.

While many European capitals want to maintain traditional funding for farmers and regions, which absorbs two -thirds of the budget, but others are pushing to head more funds to new and urgent priorities, such as defense.

“So many priorities, so little money,” Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipafski told reporters Tuesday, stressing that defense costs should compete with existing needs, such as Georgia. “The negotiations will be very difficult,” he added.

The complex process of training the European budget is evolving into a changing geopolitical environment, with the United States under Trump moving away from European security while Europe is trying to maintain its support for Ukraine against Russian aggression. The US president promised a new weapon package this week, but clarified that NATO’s European allies would have to pay the costs.

The European Commission, the EU Executive Body, will present on Wednesday the draft of the seven -year budget for the period starting in 2028, with key priorities being security and competitiveness. Some countries boost the pressure to activate a common debt issue to increase the funding of the Union, which could benefit Ukraine as well.

The complexity of the process is increasing even more because of the EU’s need to accelerate its re -equipment after years of underlying. The Russian war, which enters the fourth year, coupled with declining US support, has highlighted the military weakness of the European continent.

Donald Trump’s proposal to finance weapons missions to Ukraine from European Funds was reserved on Tuesday. EU foreign policy leader Kaya Callas warned that if the Union pays for US weapons, this would equate a European contribution.

“We are already doing everything we can to help Ukraine,” Callas said. “The appeal is all to do the same. If you promise weapons but you say that someone else will pay, it’s not your offer, isn’t you? “

The defense costs provided by the EU budget remain distinct – and much lower – than the amounts investing individually the Member States. Defense Commissioner, the Andrian button, estimated that European funding would be about 40 times lower than national defense spending during the next programming period.

As he told Bloomberg, European conditions do not allow the use of EU funds to buy US weapons in favor of Ukraine. However, Member States can use the European loan fund of 150 billion euros for joint supplies, thereby releasing national funds to purchase US defense material.

The issue is becoming more complicated as many EU governments find it difficult to control their growing public debts. At last month’s summit, German Chancellor Friedrich Mertz warned that the accumulation of debt from states and businesses involved the risk of a new financial crisis.

At the same time, the debate on raising defense spending to 5% of GDP, under NATO, raises concerns in governments such as Spain, whether it can be implemented given the restrictions on national budgets.

Countries such as France, Spain and Greece have proposed the issuance of a common European debt as a means of leverage additional funding, and Spain has also suggested the granting of non -refundable grants to the Eastern Front states. On the contrary, Italy argues that dependence on national debt is not viable for economically fragile countries.

Even states that traditionally oppose large European budgets, such as Denmark, are now more positive in innovative solutions. However, Germany and the Netherlands are still rejecting the issuance of a joint debt for military spending, in discussions that have been held in camera.

Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipafski said on Tuesday against the common debt, saying that debts linked to the pandemic should first be repaid.

The € 150 billion lending fund, funded through a common debt, aims to provide cheap credit to Member States for joint supplies, and potentially for Ukraine. European Commission President Ursula von der Laien has urged Member States to use this tool for investment directly in Ukraine’s defense industry, as 40% of its industrial capacity remains untapped.

“Our Member States can use Safe loans and supply the Ukrainian defense industry directly. For them, they are high quality, fast and cheap. For Ukraine, it is decisive revenue, but also an opportunity to strengthen its industrial base, “said von der Layen.