Kubilius: “SAFE will not be automatically suspended in the event of a negative ruling by the Court of Justice”

Brussels – SAFE will not be scrapped, certainly not any time soon. The €150 billion defence programme will remain in force even if the judges were to rule against it and will not disrupt the European Union’s agenda. This was clarified by the Commissioner for Defence, Andrius Kubilius, in response to a question from an ECR MEP
Anna Zalewska, who even began to seek clarification on the repayment of loans in the event of a negative ruling on the Commission’s actions. It is primarily in response to this question that Kubilius provided the necessary clarification: “Should the Court of Justice of the European Union annul the SAFE Regulation, this would not automatically suspend its implementation.” This means that operations would continue as if nothing had happened, even though that would not be the case. 

The Commission should, however, draft entirely new legislation to provide a legal basis and legal certainty for the 12-point agenda. Everyone within the College of Commissioners is aware of this, starting with Kubilius himself, who acknowledges that the crux of the matter lies in “maintaining the effects of the regulation until it is replaced by a new act adopted under the ordinary legislative procedure.” 

So there’s no need to worry. Also, because, as the Commissioner points out, “the European Parliament has asked the Court of Justice of the European Union to uphold the effects of the regulation.” However, this implies that in the event of a negative ruling by the judges in Luxembourg, the Commission would have to act swiftly to present a new proposal, as it will not be possible to act in derogation of missing legislation. 

The SAFE defence programme was approved by invoking the provisions of Article 122 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), which, through a fast-track procedure, effectively excludes the Strasbourg Chamber from any consultation. It is this decision that has led the European Parliament to take the Commission to the Court of Justice, triggering legal proceedings and an inter-institutional clash. The von der Leyen team, however, makes the point: “The Commission considers that Article 122 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU is the sole and appropriate legal basis for the SAFE Regulation,” Kubilius reiterates. The ball is now in the Court of Justice’s court.