“I have to be very honest, brutally honest with you, Europe is not strong enough at the moment.” With these words, Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin (37) addressed the public in Sydney last week. “Without the US, we would be in trouble right now.”
A judgment on European defense policy that ETH military expert Alexander Bollfrass (38) confirmed in an interview with Blick. “Europe has shown neither the ability nor the willingness to defend itself against Russian aggression. For decades, American requirements to be adequately rested have been ignored – and now we have a problem.”
1986 was declared the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. This is where disarmament began – after years of massive rearmament and looming confrontations between the then US and the Soviet Union. Euphoria and the dream of a Europe living in peace dominated international politics. Or in the words of Bollfrass: “Since the end of the Cold War, many Europeans have indulged in fanciful pacifism.”
The powerlessness and passivity of Europe can, according to the expert, be exaggeratedly illustrated by Germany. Leaving aside Germany’s habit of feeling morally superior and its persistence in understanding Moscow better than the rest of the world, Bollfrass said it was “quite representative of a Western European country that has lost touch with reality” . However, Germany is not alone in this, as are most other European countries.
Disarmament has put Europe in a threatening situation
Over the past 20 years, EU defense spending has increased by just 20 percent, compared to 66 percent in the United States, almost 300 percent in Russia and 600 percent in China. EU chief diplomat Josep Borrell (75) called on Thursday to increase the Union’s defense budget by more than 30 percent to 70 billion euros in 2025. Although there has been a lot of rearming in Ukraine since the war began, it seems like a lofty goal.
According to figures from the German Bundeswehr in October, the ammunition would only be enough for two days in an emergency. According to NATO specifications, ammunition should last at least a month. To meet these standards, Germany alone would need €20 billion.
Bollfrass said it was prudent in the meantime to cut defense spending, arms and ammunition stockpiles, and cut back the armed forces. One thing was wrong, however: “The mental disarmament that kept European governments unable and unwilling to recognize the growing threat from Moscow.” In addition, the European people had become “lazy about war”.
In Europe, the willingness of Europeans to pay a price for preserving their values such as human rights, democracy and national sovereignty is now being tested once again. The support from the US is therefore all the more important. Because finding a solution independently of the US, i.e. NATO, is currently neither possible nor necessary, according to the military expert. “It is the best available forum for Europe to take responsibility for its own security by developing and discussing its own proposals and backing them up with serious investments in military capabilities.”
important? Listening to Eastern European countries and their concerns. Because: “Not all European countries have been affected by this willful blindness to Russia.” While the US and Europe were underprepared to fight “the biggest war on the continent since World War II,” according to Bollfrass, the closer countries are to Russia, the better prepared they are. Sanna Marin also admits: “We should have listened to our Baltic and Polish friends much sooner.”