Catherine Ashton, Head of the European Defence Agency, has confirmed appointment of Giampaolo Lillo as EDA Armaments Director and renewal of Christian Bréant’s appointment as Research & Technology Director.
In a letter addressed to Ministers of Defence, the Head of the Agency wrote that Giampaolo Lillo and Christian Bréant were “admirably suited for the tasks”. Giampaolo Lillo was R&T Director in the Italian Armament Directorate since 2009, and Christian Bréant has been EDA Research & Technology Director since 2008. They both have a wide experience in Defence cooperation issues, both from a European and a national perspective.
Claude-France Arnould, EDA’s Chief Executive, said: “I am delighted with Giampaolo Lillo and Christian Bréant’s appointments. At a time of shrinking Defence budgets across Europe as well as high level of European Armed Forces’ engagements, EDA is well-placed to support its Member States to maximize opportunities for cooperation. We will continue to build on the achievements of the Agency to improve the European cooperation, both in Armaments and in Research & Technology. Giampaolo Lillo and Christian Bréant’s experience and skills will be crucial in taking forward the EDA’s work in these areas.”
Giampaolo Lillo added: “I consider my appointment as a great opportunity to contribute to the further development of European cooperation in the field of armament that I intend to continue promoting in the spirit of the best synergy among all the EDA components and keeping in mind the centrality of the EDA capabilities development mission in support of European MS’s Armed Forces.”
Christian Bréant added: “I am very happy and proud to manage again the R&T community at EDA, both with the European R&T directors and their teams and with our EDA collaborators. In this time of financial and economic crisis, my ambition is to demonstrate how the Defence R&T cooperation in Europe could bring its full added value in the preparation of future Defence capabilities.”