On the eve of the French presidency of the European Council, it is worrying to see that the overall military capability of EU member states is still weak given their economic weight. Without a change in armaments policies, the durability of the European defence industry is un-certain, particularly owing to rising global competition. Four years after the establishment of the European Defence Agency, which is an undeniable success but cannot progress without determination on the part of the member states who steer it, the tools for a European armaments policy are seemingly in place. And the European commission makes a decisive contribution to the establishment of a European defence equipment market with the ‘defence package’. So it is time to make decisions and to launch concrete projects.
A joint European Armaments Venture: the Sole Chance for Industry?
The European Union is the first economic power on earth with a gross domestic product and an internal market significantly larger than those of the United States. However, despite efforts from some member states, its military weakness persists; the shortfall of armaments investments is one of the major causes. Europeans should be aware that it is necessary to progressively increase the resources devoted to armament if they want to maintain their military capability and the underpinning technological and industrial base.
Indeed, in 2005, the spending per soldier is three times larger in the United States than in Europe. It would be simplistic to say that the US soldier is three times better equipped than his European colleague. However, the differential is enough to make a difference at the operational level, especially since investment remains fragmented in Europe which limits its effectiveness. Without a change in practices, the trend will be an increase of this capability differential: research and technology (R&T) investment is actually five times larger on the other side of the Atlantic than in Europe.
This situation is worrying, not so much because of the emergence of a technological gap between the Americans and their European allies, which is however an issue to assure the durability of the transatlantic link, but because there is now a real risk that Europe could be overtaken in the technological field by some emerging actors (China, India, Brazil, etc.) who are regularly and significantly increasing their armaments and defence technology expenses.
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