EU members' defence spending should buy more time for debt cuts -von der Leyen

FILE PHOTO: European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen attends a solemn moment to remember the people killed in Israel, during the ongoing conflict with Hamas, at the European Parliament, in Brussels, Belgium, October 11, 2023. REUTERS/Johanna Geron/File Photo

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - A country investing in cross-border EU defence projects should be given more time to cut its public debt under EU fiscal rules, the head of the European Commission said on Thursday.

The fiscal rules are under revision and such a change would go beyond what has so far been agreed among governments, which only want to grant defence spending the status of a "relevant factor" when the Commission assesses whether a budget deficit is within EU limits.