EU aims to regulate firearms via electronic licenses amid illegal gun concerns and political violence incidents.
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Brussels aims to regulate firearms through electronic licenses, as an estimated 35 million illicit firearms circulate in the EU, though exact figures are unavailable. Recent assassination attempts on Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico and former US President Donald Trump have brought firearm issues into focus. The European Parliament and Council agreed to update EU regulations concerning the import, export, and transit of civilian firearms to increase transparency. A key feature of this new regulation is the creation of a secure electronic licensing system (ELS) for manufacturers and distributors, which will replace existing national systems. This system must be established by 2026, with member states having until 2028 to adopt or integrate their digital systems into it. Furthermore, the Commission will issue an annual public report on civilian firearm imports and exports. While some countries have permissive gun laws, like Czechia, others, such as Romania, maintain very strict regulations for acquiring firearms. Research suggests that while legal access to guns is not directly correlated with homicide rates, the regulation of this access and official controls are crucial; in fact, legal ownership can increase suicide risk. Most European firearm-related deaths have been suicides or domestic violence incidents rather than mass shootings.
