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A lot happens every day. Alliances shift, leaders change, and conflicts erupt. With In Brief, we’ll help you make sense of it all. Each week, experts will dig deep on a single issue happening in the world to help you better understand it.***In March, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced the ReArm Europe Plan/Readiness 2030, designed to help boost E.U. member states’ defense spending. The effort comes amidst intensifying awareness that Europe can no longer remain reliant on the United States to help ensure European security. A key element of the plan is the creation of a new loan instrument called Security Action for Europe (SAFE) that offers up to 150 billion euros. The fund will provide loans “backed by the EU budget” and includes requirements intended to encourage “common procurement.” We asked four experts: Will the new SAFE loan instrument be effective in helping European states boost defense funding?Read more below.Anna Dowd Senior International/Defense Researcher, RANDReArm Europe signals a shift in European strategies for funding deterrence and defense amidst escalating threats and risks that place an unprecedented premium on Europe’s security. While SAFE offers a promising avenue for financing defense investments, Europe’s chronic security underfunding necessitates a broader strategy. This strategy should bolster production capacity, rectify structural vulnerabilities in the defense industrial base, and implement rapid acquisition mechanisms to ensure timely and impactful warfighting capabilities for credible deterrence.A comprehensive approach must align E.U. and national efforts to increase defense investments by adjusting fiscal rules for greater borrowing and debt, creating off-budget defense funds through bonds or loans, reallocating public spending, and leveraging private-sector financing. SAFE should be coupled with incentives for commercial companies, along with formal requirements and clear government orders for sustained production. The European Union should also remove barriers to deeper defense cooperation with the United Kingdom and Turkey.Otto Svendsen Associate