€150 Million Down the Defence Rabbit Hole of Yuriko Backes, Lex Delles, and Gilles Roth

Finance minister Gilles Roth wants you to believe that throwing €150 million at defence startups is a brilliant economic strategy. Not an obligation. Not a Nato checkbox. A “driver of growth.” Spare us, Gilles Roth. The money comes from three pockets: the Sovereign Fund (€25m), the SNCI (€75m), and the direct budget (€50m). Gilles Roth calls this “leverage.” The rest of us call it what it is: politicians funneling public cash into risky ventures because Nato told them to. Gilles Roth boasts about 2.1% of GNI going to defence. But let’s be honest – without the alliance breathing down his neck, would Gilles Roth even touch this file? Doubtful. Lux Defence Minister Promises Jobs and Sovereignty, Delivers Buzzwords Defence minister Yuriko Backes says “future conflicts will be won through technology.” Groundbreaking, Yuriko Backes. Absolutely groundbreaking. She also claims the fund will create jobs and protect sovereignty. How? By investing in “dual-use technologies” – a fancy term for gadgets that can kill people and also sell to civilians. Yuriko Backes talks about European value chains and R&D as if Luxembourg single-handedly invented innovation. But here’s the uncomfortable question Yuriko Backes won’t answer: how many of these €150 million will actually stay [...]

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