EU defence procurement shouldn’t be focused on a single European system but rather on fostering development across various competing programmes to boost innovation, Carsten Stawitzki, the head of the armaments department of Germany’s defence ministry, told Euractiv. In an interview ahead of the launch of a dedicated Brussels bureau for the Federal Office of Bundeswehr Equipment, Information Technology and In-Service Support, or BAAINBw for short, Stawitzki argued that the EU’s drive to create a single European defence market risks stifling technological competition by encouraging joint procurement over the development of rival systems.JOIN US ON TELEGRAMFollow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official. “In my view, there is a fundamental realisation that has not yet sunk in in Brussels,” said Stawitzki. “We must move away from competition based on public procurement law – which leads to the harmonisation of the European defence market – towards technological competition, in order to secure the best products for our security and defence.” He said that Europe should invest in competing technologies to produce the best military equipment, pointing to Ukraine’s wartime procurement model as an example. The new BAAINBw office in Brussels expected to launch as early as September or October with an eventual team of 25 to 30 people, Stawitzki said. It will allow German officials to engage directly with the European Commission and other EU institutions.