EU's von der Leyen: The Europe of defence has finally awakened

THE HAGUE, June 24 (Reuters) - The Europe of defence has finally awakened as a result of Russia's war against Ukraine, the European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said on Tuesday, adding Europe now had to keep up its efforts in terms of innovation and financing.

"All of Europe is facing a changing international landscape as we've just heard, rightly so. The security architecture that we relied on for decades can no longer be taken for granted. It is a once in a generation tectonic shift. But in recent months, Europe has taken action, action that seemed unthinkable just a year ago," she told reporters ahead of a two-day summit of the alliance in The Hague.

"The Europe of defense has finally awakened. Tomorrow, the summit will set indeed historic new spending targets for NATO allies," von der Leyen.