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Juncker: EU should be ‘soft power’ amid defence pressure

Juncker: EU should be 'soft power' amid defence pressure | iNFOnews.ca
The European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, left, is greeted by Slovenia's prime minister Miro Cerar in Brdo, Slovenia, Thursday, March 2, 2017. Jean-Claude Juncker is on two day official visit to Slovenia. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic) A

LJUBLJANA, Slovenia – The head of the European Union’s executive branch is stressing the importance of development aid, saying that the bloc should remain a “soft power” even as members face pressure to ramp up defence spending.

NATO has for years urged members to increase defence spending to reach a target of 2 per cent of gross domestic product, and the issue has been seized upon recently by U.S. President Donald Trump.

European Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker said Thursday he favours European NATO members taking more responsibility. But he added: “I’m still in favour of the European Union being a soft power.”

Juncker said: “Don’t believe those who are saying that we have to spend more and more and more on defence. There are other means to safeguard the stability.”

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