Berlin and Paris ‘missing in action’ as EU lacks leadership in defense

A lack of leadership by countries such as Germany and France and narrow industrial interests keep Europe from boosting defense cooperation as warranted by Russia’s war on Ukraine, a report by the Munich Security Conference stated on Wednesday.

“The crucial capability gap in European defense is still political leadership,” the Munich Security Report on European Defense said.

The annual Munich Security Conference, usually held in February, is an influential global gathering of top policymakers and analysts to debate defense and security challenges.

While acknowledging European defense has come a long way since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the report said Europeans were still far from living up to a “darkening” global security environment.

The report said Germany and France in particular were “missing in action” at a time when European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen and EU top diplomat Josep Borrell are driving EU support for Kyiv and joint procurement initiatives.

“Under the (Chancellor Olaf) Scholz government, Germany has faced recurrent criticism for its absence in EU defense questions,” it said. “Meanwhile, France is seen as pursuing narrow industrial rather than collective European interests.”

It said both countries’ initial dithering on supplying arms to Ukraine, on top of a history of neglecting eastern European fears of Russia, has caused lasting damage to their credibility in eastern Europe and to that of joint defense initiatives.

“The onus is on Germany and France to win back trust,” the report said, adding that time was of the essence in speeding up defense cooperation.

[Reuters]