Europe is facing a question it has spent decades trying to avoid.
After Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, rising pressure from the United States, and increasingly blunt warnings from military leaders, the European Union is being forced to confront a reality that once seemed unthinkable: its own defence readiness.
For years, Europe relied on diplomacy, economic integration, and transatlantic security guarantees to maintain stability. Today, that confidence is fading. With the war in Ukraine showing no clear end, trust eroding between allies, and warnings of future escalation growing louder, the EU is moving—quickly—to shore up its military, industrial, and strategic foundations.