Dear Heads of Delegation,

Dear Chair of the ESA Council,

Dear Director-General, dear Josef,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is a pleasure to address you today.

Today, I want to highlight three key points:

• The geopolitical context for defense and space
• Our space priorities
• Collaboration with ESA

We are in the 21st century, which I believe is the century of space. Our economy increasingly relies on space systems.

The global space economy is rapidly growing, and Europe must actively engage with this transformation to seize opportunities.

This year is pivotal for Europe as we work on decisions that will shape our space agenda for the next decade.

The EU is preparing a space package by the end of this month, followed by proposals for the next budget. Meanwhile, ESA is gearing up for the Ministerial Council in November.

We must optimize the benefits for Europe together.

Now, let’s consider the broader geopolitical context.

Europe stands at a crossroads. Although we are not at war, we live in a time where the threat of conflict looms.

We must shift our perspective from peacetime to a defense-ready mindset.

Intelligence services warn us of potential aggression, and we need to adapt our actions accordingly to deter such threats.

Recently, in Aachen, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen emphasized two priorities: Pax Europaea and an Independent Europe.

Her message is clear: to achieve peace in Europe, we must be prepared to maintain our independence. As she stated, we cannot allow ourselves to be derailed by the seismic changes we face.

Pax Europaea is our strategic responsibility, and it cannot exist without a robust defense readiness.

We are facing a critical security situation:

• The war in Ukraine continues without a clear resolution. Putin seeks conflict, not peace, and only strength can counter this.
• Russian aggression is escalating, and even with a peace agreement in Ukraine, Putin will continue to mobilize for war.
• We must prepare for potential threats against the EU.
• The U.S. withdrawal from Europe and its pivot to the Indo-Pacific presents a new reality.
• Our defense readiness is inadequate and requires urgent enhancement and a long-term strategy to replace American capabilities in Europe.

This challenging environment necessitates bold decisions and reforms, as outlined in the “Defence White Paper” and the “Rearm EU” program.

In this geopolitical context, we must realign our priorities for space.

Space is essential for defense, and defense is essential for space.

Today, readiness in defense is impossible without readiness in space. We require:

• Geointelligence data from space with all-weather imaging capabilities to revisit critical locations every 30 minutes.
• Secure satellite communications that surpass current standards.
• High-precision navigation services that are resilient against jamming and spoofing.

These capabilities are vital for modern defense.

Moreover, many civilian sectors, like aviation and emergency services, depend on space services.

While some of these services exist nationally, they are insufficient to meet our collective European needs and often lack interoperability.

Commercial space services can provide some data, but for resilience, we must augment or develop advanced systems at the EU level.

We can create these capabilities, as evidenced by our collaboration with ESA on the successful Galileo and Copernicus systems.

Now, we are implementing the new IRIS2 system for secure satellite communications, set to be operational by 2030.

Starting this summer, we will also introduce the GOVSATCOM system, pooling and sharing existing national assets.

In collaboration with ESA, we are pursuing:

• A new positioning, navigation, and timing system in Low Earth Orbit (LEO PNT) to enhance Galileos robustness for sensitive applications.
• A new Earth Observation Governmental System for high-resolution geointelligence data with rapid revisit times.

All new systems must be delivered swiftly.

We must rethink our traditional methodologies for space development, adapting to our historical context while building on our existing capabilities and coordinating with member states.

We aim to enhance not only “space for defense” but also “defense of space,” protecting our assets from increasing threats.

Space defense readiness requires us to:

• Reestablish autonomous space transportation capabilities.
• Service our satellite systems in orbit.
• React to and defend against physical threats in space.

Achieving this requires:

• Strengthening our space situational awareness through European cooperation in Space Surveillance and Tracking.
• Monitoring radio frequency interference.

Access to space is essential, and the Commission is ready to provide political leadership towards a shared long-term vision with member states and ESA.

Space represents a new frontier, and we must be present in this domain for our defense and security.

This entails European leadership in orbital and lunar economies.

Collaboration is key; we must resist fragmentation.

This brings me to my third point: the importance of EU-ESA cooperation.

ESA brings invaluable engineering expertise and is a trusted partner in developing and implementing our programs and long-term vision.

We must leverage each others strengths and complement one another.

Let me share insights on the Earth Observation Governmental Service and European Resilience from Space.

The Commission has been preparing synergies between space and security since the last mandate, particularly through the European Space Strategy for Security and Defence.

The Earth observation governmental service is a key initiative from this strategy. The Commission has conducted industrial studies and consulted member states through a dedicated group.

We aim to finalize a High-level User Requirements Document to synthesize this work, which will be discussed with member states.

This document is expected to be ready in the autumn and will serve as a political mandate for ESA.

We will also develop security requirements, which may take more time but should be ready within a year.

In this geopolitical context, swift and united action is essential.

I enjoy excellent cooperation with the ESA Director-General, and we have established a joint task force to optimize resources and initiatives.

We meet regularly to advance our complex and necessary political and programmatic agenda, linking our programs to accelerate space initiatives in Europe.

I value ESAs engineering proposals, particularly regarding reforming our development methodology.

The ESA Ministerial is an opportunity to mobilize funding in Europe next year, and we must do so wisely to prepare for the next Earth Observation Governmental Service cycle.

The ERS program is a stepping stone towards the Earth Observation Governmental Service, enabling Europe to start now without delay.

This cooperation can leverage developments supported by the Next Generation EU Recovery and Resilience Facility and respective national plans.

In conclusion:

In these complex geopolitical times, we must act swiftly, enhance our capacity under the EUs political leadership, and collaborate with member states to utilize our intellectual resources.

It is crucial that we capitalize on all major funding decisions this year to implement a cohesive plan for our future.

Our strength lies in our unity!

I look forward to seeing you all next week at the celebration for ESAs 50^th anniversary.