美國官員反對歐洲推動在當地購買武器（1/2）

 Recently Yahoo News on-line picked up the following:

US officials object to European push to buy weapons locally (1/2)

Reuters - Gram Slattery, John Irish and Daphne Psaledakis

Tue, April 1, 2025 at 10:04 p.m. PDT·4 min read

WASHINGTON/PARIS (Reuters) - U.S. officials have told European allies they want them to keep buying American-made arms, amid recent moves by the European Union to limit U.S. manufacturers' participation in weapons tenders, five sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

The messages delivered by Washington in recent weeks come as the EU takes steps to boost Europe's weapons industry, while potentially limiting purchases of certain types of U.S. arms.

The Trump administration's early foreign policy steps, including briefly cutting military aid for Ukraine and easing pressure on Moscow, have deeply unnerved European allies, prompting many to ask if the United States is a reliable partner.

In mid-March, the European Commission, the EU's executive body, proposed boosting military spending and pooling resources on joint defense projects, as Europe girds for decreased U.S. military engagement under President Donald Trump.

Some of the proposed measures could mean a smaller role for non-EU companies, including those based in the U.S. and the United Kingdom, experts say.

In a March 25 meeting, Secretary of State Marco Rubio told the foreign ministers of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia that the United States wants to continue participating in EU countries' defense procurements, the sources told Reuters.

According to two of the sources, Rubio said any exclusion of U.S. companies from European tenders would be seen negatively by Washington, which those two sources interpreted as a reference to the proposed EU rules.

One northern European diplomat, who was not part of the Baltic meeting, said they had also been recently told by U.S. officials that any exclusion from EU weapons procurements would be seen as inappropriate.

Rubio plans to discuss expectations that EU countries keep buying U.S. weapons during his visit to Brussels this week, where he will attend the NATO Foreign Ministers Meeting, said a senior State Department official.

"It's a point the secretary has raised and will continue to raise," the official said.

A State Department spokesperson said Trump welcomes recent efforts from European allies to "strengthen their defense capabilities and take responsibility for their own security," but warned against creating new barriers that exclude U.S. companies from European defense projects.

"Transatlantic defense industrial cooperation makes the Alliance stronger," the spokesperson said.

The foreign ministries of Latvia and Estonia did not respond to requests for comment. The foreign ministry of Lithuania declined to comment.

(to be continued)

Translation

美國官員反對歐洲推動在當地購買武器（1/2）

華盛頓/巴黎（路透社）—五位知情人士向路透社透露，在歐盟最近採取措施限制美國製造商參與武器招標的情況下，美國官員告訴歐洲盟友，他們希望他們繼續購買美國製造的武器。

在華盛頓最近幾週發出上述訊息之際，歐盟正採取措施推動歐洲武器工業的發展，同時可能限制購買某些類型的美國武器。

特朗普政府早期的外交政策舉措，包括短暫削減對烏克蘭的軍事援助和減輕對莫斯科的壓力，讓歐洲盟友深感不安，促使許多人質疑美國是否是一個可靠的合作夥伴。

3月中旬，歐盟執行機構歐盟委員會提議增加軍費開支，並集中資源用於聯合防禦項目，因為歐洲準備應對特朗普總統領導下的美國減少軍事參與的情況。

專家表示，一些擬議的措施可能意味著非歐盟公司（包括總部位於美國和英國的公司）的角色將減少。

消息人士告訴路透社，美國國務卿盧比奧在3月25日的會晤中告訴立陶宛、拉脫維亞和愛沙尼亞的外交部長，美國希望繼續參與歐盟國家的國防採購。

據兩位消息人士稱，盧比奧表示，任何將美國公司排除在歐洲招標之外的行為都會遭到華盛頓的負面評價，這兩位消息人士將此解讀為指向歐盟擬議規則。

一位未參加波羅的海會議的北歐外交官表示，美國官員最近也告訴他們，任何被排除在歐盟武器採購之外的行為都將被視為不恰當的。

美國國務院一位高級官員表示，盧比奧計劃在本週訪問布魯塞爾期間討論歐盟國家繼續購買美國武器的預期，他將出席北約外長會議。

這位官員表示： “這是國務卿已經提出並將繼續提出的觀點。”

美國國務院發言人表示，特朗普歡迎歐洲盟友最近「加強國防能力和承擔自身安全責任」的努力，但警告不要設置新的障礙，將美國公司排除在歐洲國防項目之外。

這位發言人說： “跨大西洋國防工業合作使聯盟更加強大。”

拉脫維亞和愛沙尼亞外交部沒有回應置評請求。立陶宛外交部拒絕發表評論。

（待續）