European defense ministries are on alert due to the Russian war on Ukraine, and the European military's attempt to come up with new solutions to confront what they call "new threats".

The first actual step taken by the Europeans to strengthen their defensive capabilities was to ratify the establishment of a “special force for rapid intervention” of 5,000 soldiers to deal quickly with any threat facing the European bloc, and for this special force to be a “miniature European army” moving under the command of the European Union after years of Hesitation, discussions, and the demand for the establishment of a European army.

This military group - which some describe as the striking force for the Europeans to intervene quickly in any armed crisis that threatens the Europeans - has caused a kind of confusion about the roles assigned to it and its relationship with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), as well as the size of the budget allocated to it.

A squad, not an army

- When the Europeans contemplated forming their own forces to defend their lands, they were faced with more than one difficult dilemma to solve, the first: not wanting to anger the Americans or sending negative messages to Washington that its military presence in Europe is no longer desirable, or that the European Union is competing with the Americans over military deployment.

- The second problem is the relationship with NATO, because the establishment of a European army will be viewed by Washington, the United Kingdom and Turkey - the most powerful countries in the alliance - as a stab in the back for the alliance and a weakening of it and its existence.

On the other hand, the Europeans were facing French pressure in particular, to move forward in establishing a European army, especially after the British withdrawal from the European Union, and French President Emmanuel Macron is still insisting on this idea and carrying its torch.

- The French enthusiasm to form a European army met with problems even within the European Union countries. There are countries that openly declare that they cannot contribute financially to the establishment of this army to the same extent that the major rich countries might contribute, and secondly, there is the position of the Eastern European countries that adhere to NATO more than their enthusiasm for any European army.

- The idea of ​​this first project came as a compromise that would not anger the Americans, would not completely close the door to French demands, and would not arouse the suspicion of NATO countries.

A step of a thousand miles

The comments of European officials - whether political or military - on the step of establishing the "European Rapid Intervention Force" came as a step in a long journey to strengthen European defense capabilities.

General Claudio Graziano is considered the architect and godfather of this idea, as he is the Chairman of the Military Committee of the European Union, and previously served as Minister of Defense and Chief of Staff in Italy, and previously served in Afghanistan, and was the commander of the joint forces in the capital, Kabul.

In an interview with the American magazine "Foreign Policy", the European general spoke of his knowledge that "there is still a long way to go" to establish a European Defense Army, "but we must act now, otherwise it will be too late."

The European military provides the tasks assigned to these forces, including moving in a “hostile military environment.” This force will also have strategic military capabilities that the United States provided in the past, such as a military air bridge, reconnaissance and intelligence capabilities, unmanned aircraft, and space communication systems Electronic warfare systems and anti-missile systems.

- Among the European countries’ plans to provide modern-style fighting tanks, as well as combat aircraft, to be able to intervene on land and air, and these forces are expected to enter service in 2025.

New old idea

2007: The European discussion began about the establishment of a European military force, but many countries were not enthusiastic about the idea, especially Germany.

End of 2019: The leaders of the European Union approved the European Security Strategy (2020-2025), which sets 4 goals, namely developing the union's security capabilities, confronting military threats, protecting European countries from terrorism, and building a European security body.

A: What accelerated the work of establishing this force was the catastrophic American withdrawal from Afghanistan, and the accompanying European anger over American behavior, and then the Russian war on Ukraine brought this project out into the open.

It appears from the statements of German officials that Berlin is the leader this time in establishing this division. The German Ministry of Defense announced that it is ready to be the solid core of these forces and provide them with what they need to be ready by the year 2025.

Funding dilemma

The funding obstacle stands in the way of any European attempt to establish a military force, but the Russian war prompted all countries in Europe to announce an increase in their military spending, and to overcome differences over the size of each country’s contribution, the European Commission proposed abandoning the value-added tax for any joint purchases of defense equipment. which are produced in Europe.

European countries are also seeking to involve the countries described as neutral, which are part of the European Union, such as Finland, Austria, Sweden, Ireland, Cyprus and Malta, in order to raise the financial capabilities of military spending.