Europe's fragmentation for military independence from the US

According to Foreign Policy, one of the founders of the European Union, Jean Monnet, was one of his slogans at the very beginning of the formation of this union to develop in the midst of the crisis, but now he says: "I always thought that Europe was built in crises, but it seems that Donald Trump's change in foreign policy has caused European countries to fall into a frenzy of rearmament and a struggle to finance it in the midst of the crisis.

In early March, the European Commission - the executive arm of the European Union - announced an 800-billion-euro program to increase the military capabilities of member states, which was an ambitious plan because many countries have difficulty financing it. The Commission, however, said it would provide member states with long-term loans to finance their pan-European projects and to continue supporting Ukraine.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in a speech that the EU is in a period of rearmament. Europe is ready to significantly increase its military spending, but experts believe that increasing military spending must be done in a coordinated manner by all countries and that unilateral action would lead to fragmentation.

Some countries, such as the Netherlands, have no problem financing their additional military spending, but many member states have to resort to huge loans that may be detrimental to their societies in the long run. Of course, the name “Rearm Europe” has also been challenged by some countries, which shows that there is still no comprehensive agreement on increasing military budgets.

Spain and Italy have opposed the rearmament plan, saying it is too harsh and should be renamed “Readiness 2030.” France and some other European countries, however, have serious doubts about the feasibility of the plan.

On the other hand, continuing to support Ukraine will impose more costs on countries. Roel Betsema, dean of the School of Economics and Business at the University of Amsterdam, said that by encouraging countries to increase military spending, the EU is taking the risk that security costs caused by the war in Ukraine could turn into a financial crisis for countries with precarious financial situations.

According to a September report published by Mario Draghi, former president of the European Central Bank and prime minister of Italy, the European defense industry suffers from a lack of standardization and interoperability of equipment. Europe’s ability to act together as a cohesive power has been weakened, and Trump is taking advantage of this and ignoring it. There is even a lack of coordination when it comes to the weapons that European countries have. For example, 12 different types of battle tanks are used in Europe, while the United States produces only one. The EU does not even support military companies operating on the continent.