London says “no” to the SAFE Programme
Photo. vwalakte/Freepik
The British government has refused to contribute nearly eight billion dollars to the EU’s SAFE program. Are we witnessing the biggest rift between London and Brussels since Brexit?
The SAFE (Security Action for Europe) programme, adopted in May 2025, is a €150 billion instrument designed to fund arms purchases and expand Europe’s industrial and defence base. The first disbursements under the programme — part of the broader ReArm Europe initiative — are expected to take place in the coming months. Non-EU countries, including Canada, Turkey, and the United Kingdom, are also eligible to participate.
It now appears that the program has hit a significant obstacle from one of the countries mentioned above. The British government has rejected the European Commission’s request for its financial contribution to SAFE. According to British sources, the Commission had asked London to allocate between four and nearly seven billion euros (about 7.8 billion dollars) to the initiative.
As reported by Bloomberg, the British side considered the requested amount far higher than what it intended to spend on the new European defense program. Statement quoted by the outlet said that London would only agree to deals that are beneficial for the United Kingdom and British industry, citing the British government, which emphasized that talks between London and Brussels are still ongoing.
