EU will double firefighting capacity to tackle climate impacts, von der Leyen says

BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The European Union will double its firefighting capacity to help countries cope with increasingly devastating climate change impacts, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Wednesday.

“These events are becoming more and more frequent and more and more intense… The EU will buy 10 light aircraft and three additional helicopters to complete its fleet,” von der Leyen said in a speech to the European Parliament in Strasbourg.

(Reporting by Kate Abnett, Marine Strauss)