Europe’s top defense official Andrius Kubilius has warned about the continent’s military readiness, revealing that European armies are operating at just half the strength NATO requires. In an interview with Euractiv, Kubilius, the EU Commissioner responsible for defense and space policy, emphasized the urgent need for governments to ramp up defense investment and reduce their reliance on American-made weapons.
“European armies are at 50% of what we need to have now, according to NATO’s targets,” Kubilius said. With rising geopolitical tensions and growing scrutiny over Europe’s dependence on transatlantic security, the Commission is pushing for a major overhaul of defense spending, prioritizing the European defense industry.
Currently, around 40% of EU defense budgets are spent on U.S. arms, amounting to approximately €800 billion. While this marks a decrease from 60% a year ago, Kubilius insists more must be done. “I cannot imagine that we will not buy anything American anymore, but diminishing that number by 10% or 20% means that a huge amount of money will stay for the European industry,” he explained.
While Kubilius promoted these statistics as a good thing, questions arise about whether it is a good thing to give up the American-grade weapons and technologies for a higher cost and lower quality. As the EU’s strategy focuses on incentivizing member states to procure more from European defense firms and invest in joint procurement programs to lower costs and boost self-sufficiency, billions of euros are being pumped into projects that may never be economically viable for decades.
“If we manage to incentivise member states also to spend more on European products, it means less for American products, slowly,” Kubilius said. The problem is, the massive funding needed for this project isn’t coming from Brussels—it’s expected to come from member states. In other words, ordinary taxpayers will end up footing the bill for underperforming mega-projects.
Kubilius acknowledged that most funding must still come from national governments. “We have our estimations of what, ideally, we would need, and €131 billion is not far away from that. But we need to understand that a majority of the money for defense is coming from the national level,” he said.
To support this shift, the European Commission is backing initiatives like SAFE, which aims to mobilize up to €150 billion in loans for defense projects across the bloc. Kubilius argues that pooled investments could not only replenish military stockpiles but also strengthen Europe’s defense industry as a global competitor.
Looking ahead, Kubilius is preparing to unveil plans for a broader European Defense Union this autumn. The framework would extend beyond EU member states to include Norway, the United Kingdom, and Ukraine.
