Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on March 20, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 24, 2026
Add as preferred source on GoogleECB may discuss its role in EU's 800 billion euro defence spending. Holzmann hints at future talks, while Lagarde downplays direct ECB involvement.
By Yoruk Bahceli and Marc Jones
LONDON (Reuters) - The European Central Bank will have a discussion at some point in the future about whether it can play a role in the bloc's plans to ramp up defence spending, policymaker Robert Holzmann said on Thursday.
The European Union is planning a joint push to raise defence spending by 800 billion euros ($867.84 billion) as it seeks to protect the region and support Ukraine amid signals from the United States that Washington plans to dial down its military backing.
Asked whether he saw a role for the ECB to finance defence spending through bond purchases, Holzmann told an event in London: "we have not discussed it yet, we alluded to it."
Responding to a follow-up question on when a discussion may happen, Austria's central bank head said it would take place in "future", without specifying a time frame.
The ECB has used various bond buying programmes since the peak of the euro zone debt crisis and during the COVID-19 pandemic to help keep government borrowing costs in check.
ECB President Christine Lagarde recently played down the likelihood the bank would play a direct role in the financing effort, saying this was not the purpose of the ECB.
Germany's parliament has also approved a massive spending plan including easing constitutionally enshrined borrowing rules to rapidly raise defence spending. The anticipated surge in borrowing has sent European government borrowing costs sharply higher this month.
($1 = 0.9218 euros)
(Reporting by Yoruk Bahceli and Marc Jones; Editing by Frances Kerry)
The article discusses the potential future role of the ECB in supporting EU defence spending plans.
Robert Holzmann mentioned that the ECB has not yet discussed its role in defence spending but may do so in the future.
The EU plans to increase defence spending by 800 billion euros to support regional protection and aid Ukraine.
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