EU defense: that's behind the super alliance with the USA

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There were tough debates for months, especially between Germany and France.

In the end, Berlin prevailed.

Once again it was about fundamental questions that have moved and divided Europeans for years: How independent should the European Union be in defending its security, stability and freedom?

How much does the EU want to rely on NATO and the Americans for defense?

Now the Europeans are hammering in a stake.

“At the meeting of the EU defense ministers, we will make decisive progress in cooperation between NATO and the EU.

From this Thursday, the NATO partners USA, Canada and Norway will also be involved in the EU's key project on military mobility, ”Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer (CDU) told WELT.

Accordingly, the Americans are now participating in the planned establishment of a European defense union.

In future, Washington will be directly involved in European security policy - this is a milestone that can have far-reaching effects on the transatlantic partnership.

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According to the decision of the ministers, Washington will participate in a multi-billion dollar project to improve the cross-border transport of troops and materials in Europe as part of the EU defense initiative “Permanent Structured Cooperation” (Pesco).

That sounds very technical, but it is a central project of European security policy.

The aim is to facilitate the transport of troops and material within Europe by investing billions in bridges, roads and rail traffic, which also includes reducing the intergovernmental bureaucracy involved in granting transit permits.

“Our infrastructure determines how agile, flexible and capable armed forces in Europe can be.

This is a decisive contribution to the common security of all Europeans, ”said Kramp-Karrenbauer.

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And she added: “Especially for Germany in the middle of Europe, the quick and smooth relocation of troops, material and equipment through our continent is of particular interest.

It strengthens our role as a logistical hub in the context of national and alliance defense on which our allies and partners rely. "

"Notable process"

Last autumn, as the incumbent EU Council Presidency under the leadership of Kramp-Karrenbauer, Germany reached an agreement that third countries should also be able to participate in Pesco in the future.

Within a few weeks, three countries then expressed their interest.

At the end of February 2021, they submitted an application for membership.

Senior EU diplomats stress that this process is “remarkable” because the Americans have declared themselves ready to take part in a major military project in which Washington does not play the leading role.

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Why do the Americans get involved?

There are mutliple reasons for this.

The US government under Joe Biden wants to revive the transatlantic partnership with specific projects and to make the links between the EU and NATO even closer.

After all, 24 EU countries also belong to the defense alliance.

"EU-NATO cooperation would benefit overall from the integration of these three important allies Norway, Canada and America," explains David McAllister (CDU), head of the Foreign Affairs Committee in the EU Parliament.

Security-political structures would be built up that strengthened transatlantic cooperation.

"It's about strengthening the European pillar in NATO," says McAllister.

But Americans also have financial interests.

The billion dollar European defense equipment markets are to be redistributed in the future according to the will of Brussels.

Washington therefore wants to have a foot in the door in important EU bodies and be informed about lucrative projects in good time in order to get a piece of the pie.

But there is another reason why the Americans in particular are so determined to build roads and bridges in Europe under European leadership: to improve military deterrence and defense against the aggressor on NATO's doorstep, that is, Russia.

In the Pentagon, of course, one knows the sentence from the textbook of military strategists: If you want to be credible, you have to be able to move the troops faster than the enemy.

Roads and rails are missing

In the meantime, NATO is working on being able to deploy 50,000 men for defense in the Baltic States within a month in an emergency.

But that only works if all the cogs mesh and the appropriate infrastructure is in place.

How necessary this is is shown by a study conducted by the two renowned ex-generals Heinrich Brauss and Ben Hodges.

In a new study for the Washington-based think tank CEPA, they come to the conclusion that in the event of a military conflict with Russia, NATO troop transports from the Norwegian port of Oslo via Sweden and the Baltic Sea to Estonia could lead to delays of up to four weeks, only because Sweden has too few roads and rails.

This is where the interests of the EU and NATO meet: fast troop transports are important for both organizations in order to guarantee the security of all allies.

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France continues to view the new military cooperation between the EU and Washington with skepticism, but ultimately the government in Paris agreed.

France, like Luxembourg and Belgium, traditionally strives for the greatest possible independence of Europeans from Americans.

That is why President Emmanuel Macron called for “strategic autonomy” for the EU a good two years ago.

The federal government in Berlin reacted coolly at the time, and it has remained so to this day. "The idea of ​​strategic autonomy for Europe goes too far if it nurtures the illusion that we can guarantee security, stability and prosperity in Europe without NATO and without the USA," said Kramp-Karrenbauer in a keynote address to the Bundeswehr last autumn. University in Hamburg. This is the fundamental difference between Paris and Berlin: America is and will remain Germany's most important ally, while France is and will remain its most important ally.

Like Paris, Berlin is definitely in favor of improving the Europeans' ability to act autonomously - but in close collaboration with the Americans.

"We want Europe to be a strong partner at eye level for the USA and not a protégé in need," said Kramp-Karrenbauer.

The Americans will step up their engagement in Europe - that is the message that will remain from the meeting of EU defense ministers this Thursday.

In return, however, according to US circles, Washington expects the Europeans to do more for stability in the neighborhood, especially in the Western Balkans and the Middle East.

As of today, the transatlantic partnership is entering a new phase.