United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) administrator Alexander De Croo said on Thursday that the European Union's long-term budget can balance defence and aid spending to ensure that Europe's neighbourhoods are safe, as they are "two sides of the same coin."
"We see more military spending, and we totally understand that in the current circumstances," he said. "But if you want that military spending to be as effective as possible, you will also have to invest in preventing that conflict from arising."
A stable neighbourhood means economic growth, democracy and peace, De Croo, also a former prime minister of Belgium, told Euronews' flagship morning programme Europe Today.
In June last year the European Commission proposed €2 trillion in spending from 2028—2034 as part as the multi-annual financial framework, the EU's seven-year budget.
The proposal is currently being debated by European heads of state before it will be ratified in the European Parliament, with a hopeful December deadline.
