RE: EUROPEAN COMMISSION
DAILY NEWS
Brussels, 17 June 2025
Commission proposes simplification to speed up defence investments in the EU
Today, the European Commission proposes measures to speed up defence investments and production to make the EU more responsive to today's security challenges, as outlined in the Commission's White Paper for European Defence-Readiness 2030.
The measures, laid down in a Defence Readiness Omnibus, aim to help Member States and industry scale up defence capabilities and infrastructure to reach the levels of readiness required to prepare for and thereby deter a high intensity conflict. The measures reduce red tape, facilitate investments in defence capabilities and provide greater predictability to industry. They also make it easier to access EU funding. For this purpose, the Omnibus will:
Introduce a fast-track permitting regime for defence projects: across the EU, the permitting process can take several years. The proposal reduces this timeframe to 60 days. It also proposes to establish Single Points of Contact in Member States for the defence industry.
Reduce administrative burden in the European Defence Fund (EDF) for applicants and participants. It will also facilitate increased participation of Ukrainian entities in the European Defence Fund.
Ease procurement by encouraging joint purchases and increase contract thresholds, thereby speeding up cross-border transfers of defence products.
Clarify the application of existing EU-wide rules such as competition or environmental legislation.
Ensure that chemicals regulations accommodate defence needs.
Improve access to finance by streamlining InvestEU eligibility criteria, providing guidance on sustainable investments in defence and clarifying the notion of prohibited weapons under the Sustainable Finance Framework.
Together, these changes aim to improve Europe's ability to act quickly, coordinate more effectively, and ensure its defence industry can deliver at speed and scale.
Next Steps
The legislative proposals are subject to negotiations in the European Parliament and in the Council, under the ordinary legislative procedure.
Background
The initiative builds on the vision set out in the White Paper for European Defence-Readiness 2030, which identified regulatory simplification and harmonisation as essential levers for boosting Europe's defence preparedness.
The proposal complements the targeted amendments presented in April 2025 to existing EU funding programmes to support faster, more flexible and coordinated investments in Europe's defence technological and industrial base (EDTIB).
The proposal also incorporates feedback from a public consultation launched on 25 March 2025, which gathered input from Member States, defence industrial players, SMEs, and other stakeholders across the EU. It also includes input from President Von der Leyen's Strategic Dialogue with the European Defence Industry on 12 May and Implementation Dialogue with stakeholders chaired by Commissioner Kubilius on 19 May 2025.
The initiative also responds to the European Council's call on 6 March 2025 for the Commission to prioritise a defence-specific simplification omnibus, acknowledging the need to support Europe's defence industry in meeting rapidly evolving security challenges.
For More Information
DG DEFIS Website – EU Defence Industry
Questions and answers
Factsheet
Adopted documents:
Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council on the Defence Simplification Omnibus
Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Regulations (EC) 1907/2006, (EC) 1272/2008, (EU) 528/2012, EU 2019/1021 and (EU) 2021/697 as regards defence readiness and facilitating defence investments and conditions for defence industry
Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Directives 2009/43/EC and 2009/81/EC, as regards the simplification of intra-EU transfers of defence-related products and the simplification of security and defence procurement
Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the acceleration of permit granting for defence readiness projects
Quote(s)
With the Defence Readiness Omnibus, we are sending a clear political signal: Europe is serious about defence and creating credible preparedness. We are cutting through bureaucracy to help Member States and industry act faster, invest smarter, and strengthen our collective deterrence. This is about turning EU ambition into real capability.
Henna Virkkunen, Executive Vice-President for Tech Sovereignty, Security and Democracy
Our Single Market is a powerful tool to accelerate European defence industrial production to deter potential threats to the EU countries and our citizens. Today’s simplification package for defence proposes to unleash Europe’s overwhelming economic heft, by breaking down internal barriers, cutting red tape and clarifying the rules, so that a truly European defence industrial and technological capacity can be ramped up quickly, efficiently and effectively.
Valdis Dombrovskis, Commissioner for Economy and Productivity; Implementation and Simplification
The only way to ensure European peace is to make sure we are ready to defend ourselves credibly and quickly. With this package, we are putting forward ambitious proposals to cut red tape and facilitate the €800 billion defence investments that Member States urgently need to undertake to deliver European Defence Readiness by 2030.
Andrius Kubilius, Commissioner for Defence and Space
Commission proposes gradual phase-out of Russian gas and oil imports into the EU
The EU will gradually and effectively stop the import of Russian gas and oil by the end of 2027, under a legislative proposal put forward by the European Commission today. This will end the EU's exposure to market and economic security risks due to dependency on Russian fossil fuels, and ultimately boost the Union's energy independence and competitiveness.
Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said: "Russia has repeatedly attempted to blackmail us by weaponising its energy supplies. We have taken clear steps to turn off the tap and end the era of Russian fossil fuels in Europe for good.”
Today's legislative proposal follows the REPowerEU Roadmap, which the Commission adopted last month. It sets out an EU-wide plan to phase-out Russian gas imports in a gradual and well-coordinated manner, in a spirit of solidarity, while pursuing the clean transition. Today's proposal has been designed to preserve the security of the EU's energy supply, while limiting any impact on prices and markets, as explained in the accompanying analysis.
The remaining Russian gas volumes can be phased out without significant economic impact or risks to security of supply, due to the availability of sufficient alternative suppliers in the global gas market, a well interconnected Union gas market and the availability of sufficient import infrastructure in the EU. In addition, today's proposal has built-in safeguards to respond to the reality of the gas markets while providing companies with a solid legal framework.
Overall, the phase-out of Russian fossil fuels will make an important contribution to the objectives of the Competitiveness Compass, the Clean Industrial Deal and the Affordable Energy Action Plan, which underlined how a cleaner and independent energy system helps boost the economy, while also supporting Europe's decarbonisation ambitions.
A gradual and coordinated phase-out of Russian fossil fuels
The proposed Regulation provides a stepwise phase-out of pipeline gas and liquefied natural gas (LNG) originating in or exported directly or indirectly from the Russian Federation. It also presents measures to facilitate the complete stop of Russian oil imports by the end of 2027.
Member States will be required to present diversification plans with precise measures and milestones for the gradual elimination of Russian gas and oil imports.
Under the envisaged gradual import ban, Russian gas imports under new contracts will be prohibited as of 1 January 2026. Imports under existing short-term contracts will be stopped by 17 June 2026, except those for pipeline gas delivered to land-locked countries and linked to long-term contracts which will be allowed until the end of 2027. Imports under long-term contracts will be stopped by the end of 2027.
Long-term contracts for LNG terminal services for customers from Russia or controlled by Russian undertakings will also be prohibited. This will ensure that terminal capacity can be redirected to alternative suppliers, ultimately enhancing energy markets' resilience.
This stepwise approach will help to effectively halt the importation of Russian gas, while limiting possible impacts on energy prices in the Union and avoiding any risk for security of supply. The Commission will support the Member States throughout the entire process. It will monitor closely, together with EU Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators (ACER), the progress and impacts of the phase-out of Russian gas and oil imports. In case the security of supply of one or more Member States is threatened, the Commission can take necessary emergency measures.
Provisions to enhance the transparency, monitoring, and traceability of Russian gas within EU markets will support the effective implementation of the import ban. Under the proposed Regulation, companies holding gas supply contracts for Russian gas will have to provide information to the Commission. In addition, importers of Russian gas will have to provide customs authorities with all necessary information confirming the path of the imported gas from its actual origin up to the point of import into the Union.
Next steps
The proposed Regulation will follow the co-decision legislative process, meaning that it will be for the European Parliament and Council to adopt it. Adoption in the Council will require qualified majority.
The Commission will continue to work very closely with the Member States on diversification efforts and infrastructure improvements, especially with those that are the most impacted.
EU Leaders agreed on the phase-out of Russian energy in the Versailles Declaration of March 2022. As an immediate response to the war in Ukraine and Russia's weaponisation of energy supplies, the European Commission put forward the REPowerEU Plan in May 2022.
Despite the significant progress achieved under the REPowerEU Plan and via sanctions since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, in 2024 the EU saw a rebound in Russian gas imports. Therefore, in May 2025, the Commission put forward the REPowerEU Roadmap, a plan setting out the EU-wide phase-out of Russian energy imports.
Proposal for a Regulation to phase out Russian gas imports and improve monitoring of potential energy dependencies and accompanying documents
Roadmap towards ending Russian energy imports
Russia has repeatedly attempted to blackmail us by weaponising its energy supplies. We have taken clear steps to turn off the tap and end the era of Russian fossil fuels in Europe for good.
Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission
Importing gas from Russia is a security threat to Europe. This is why we are now proposing an EU ban on Russian gas imports. This will increase our energy independence while also reducing the revenues Putin uses to finance his war. The Commission will work hand in hand with all Member States, especially those that may face challenges because of this. No Member State will be left without energy as a result of this proposal.
Dan Jørgensen, Commissioner for Energy and Housing
G7 Leaders' statement on recent developments between Israel and Iran
We, the leaders of the G7, reiterate our commitment to peace and stability in the Middle East.
In this context, we affirm that Israel has a right to defend itself. We reiterate our support for the security of Israel.
We also affirm the importance of the protection of civilians.
Iran is the principal source of regional instability and terror.
We have been consistently clear that Iran can never have a nuclear weapon.
We urge that the resolution of the Iranian crisis leads to a broader de-escalation of hostilities in the Middle East, including a ceasefire in Gaza.
We will remain vigilant to the implications for international energy markets and stand ready to coordinate, including with like-minded partners, to safeguard market stability.
Commission welcomes political agreement on a stronger and more flexible visa suspension mechanism
The European Commission welcomes the provisional political agreement reached today between the European Parliament and the Council on the revision of the visa suspension mechanism, proposed by the Commission in October 2023. The revised rules are a further step in effectively deterring and addressing situations of abuse of visa-free travel.
Visa-free travel is a key pillar of the Schengen area, bringing economic and societal benefits to Europe. At the same time, the evolving geopolitical context has brought new challenges linked to visa-free travel. These include increased irregular arrivals due to the lack of alignment with the EU's visa policy, investor citizenship schemes in visa-free countries, or hybrid threats, such as state-sponsored instrumentalisation of migrants. The new rules agreed today will allow for swifter and more decisive action to address these challenges.
The updated rules include:
New grounds to suspend visa-free regimes: it will now be possible to trigger the visa suspension mechanism not only in case of sudden and substantial increase in irregular migration, lack of readmission cooperation, or security risks, but also in cases of insufficient alignment with the EU's visa policy, hybrid threats, the operation of investor citizenship schemes, and the deterioration of the external relations between the EU and visa-free non-EU countries;
Lower thresholds to trigger the suspension mechanism, to make it easier to act in cases of misuse of visa- free arrangements;
A swifter and more flexible procedure, to react faster in case of need (for instances in case of a high increase in arrivals or the existence of security threats), and to allow more time for remedial actions by the partner country;
Stronger monitoring and reporting obligations: The Commission will now report to the European Parliament and the Council on any visa-free countries where challenges are identified.
The Regulation must now be formally adopted by the European Parliament and the Council before it enters into force, which will happen 20 days after publication in the Official Journal of the EU.
The proposal to revise the Visa Suspension Mechanism was announced in October 2023. The EU currently has a visa-free regime with 60 non-EU countries. Nationals of these countries can enter the Schengen area for short stays of up to 90 days in any 180-day period without a visa.
The Visa Suspension Mechanism was introduced in 2013 to enable a temporary suspension of the visa exemption in case of a sudden and substantial increase in irregular migration. The mechanism was subsequently revised in 2017 to make it easier for Member States to notify circumstances leading to a possible suspension to enable the Commission to trigger the suspension mechanism on its own initiative.
Commission Proposal amending Regulation (EU) 2018/1806 as regards the revision of the suspension mechanism
HOME website - Visa Policy
Visa-free travel plays a vital role in fostering direct connections between individuals and in enhancing business, social, and cultural links between the EU and its partner nations. Preserving this achievement—and broadening its reach—demands ongoing diligence. Today’s agreement sets the path for a more robust mechanism that will allow us to respond swiftly to any misuse of visa-free arrangements, and address new challenges such as hybrid threats.
One of the greatest advantages of the Schengen Area is visa-free travel — a core benefit for EU Member States and partner countries alike. It is also one of the key reasons why Europe remains the world’s leading destination for tourism and business. But to keep Schengen going and growing, we must continue to develop and safeguard it. Our visa policy is a vital tool for protecting the integrity of the Schengen area. That is why a stronger visa suspension mechanism is essential — it allows for swifter procedures, enhances monitoring and reporting, and ensures that if visa-free travel is misused or visa alignment fails, we can act quickly and decisively.
Magnus Brunner, Commissioner for Internal Affairs and Migration