Europe needs its own Army

Europe can simply not live under the threat of continued Russian intimidation. I’m with Zelenskyy. Europe needs its own Army.

As an Economist who also works in the geopolitical realm, yet who happens to be a former soldier – for me it is truly more straightforward than I think politicians and diplomats are leading us to believe. Offense, or the threat thereof, is almost always the best form of Defense. Mutually Assured Destruction, whatever the minor variations it has undergone during and post Cold War, essentially remains the backbone of nuclear realpolitik. European NATO member armies, Russia knows, have been dangerously underesourced.

Building up of European Defense budgets to 3.5% of GDP should be considered critical to National Security. In the case of Britain where we are currently moving towards 2.5%, an additional 1% would represent circa £30 Billion pounds. This is absolutely not an insignificant sum, yet in comparison to living under the subjugation of ongoing threat posed by Russia, it really is a price we can’t afford to not pay. From my very first involvement with the British Army, as a junior Officer Cadet, to, after leaving and rejoining – when I left 10 years ago, manpower had reduced from 130,000 to roughly 77,000 (now circa 73k). Given perhaps roughly only 1/3 of these are deployable Infantry, our current numbers are tactically of limited use. Let alone the degradation in ammunition supplies that we have permitted (given to Ukraine and not replaced).

Like Churchill in the late 30s, I would say we should re-arm and “up-arm” now, and I personally would go so far as to say we should attack Russia first. I for one don’t like living with the threat of a boot on my throat.