Rajan Mennon, senior fellow at Columbia University's Staltzman Institute for War and Peace Studies in New York City, says the Russian military is not a paper tiger, but the right lesson to be learned from the war in Ukraine is that Europeans are fully capable of defending themselves.
The author explained this in an article in the New York Times, pointing out that Europe acts as if it cannot defend itself against Russia.
Menon added that the narrative of American and European officials since the Russian attack on Ukraine is that Russia is determined to dominate its neighbors, posing a serious military threat to the whole of Europe, and the decisions of Finland and Sweden to join NATO supported this idea, and the consensus in the West was that Putin had turned the Russian military into a formidable fighting machine, but the reality confirms that the performance of the Russian military in Ukraine was modest.
It's time for Europe to defend itself
European countries can join forces and prepare sufficient military power to deter or defeat Russia, he said, noting that it is time for Europe to be serious about its defense.
The author compared the power of Europe with the power of Russia in several areas, to say that Europe is in a much stronger position than Russia. Last year, the EU's GDP was $16.6 trillion, and Russia's $2.2 trillion. This means that the EU, even without Britain, has an economy 7 times larger than Russia's.
As for technology, an important element of contemporary warfare and for measuring power, there is very little of an industry for high-end electronics such as luxury cars or any AI-incorporated industry originating in Russia. The mixed record of some high-quality Russian equipment used on Ukraine's battlefields such as some of the most advanced missiles, air defenses and even field radios confirms that these industries all relied on basic components made in the United States, Europe, Japan or South Korea.
Abandoning asylum in America
However, says Menon, Europe acts as if it does not have the capacity to repel a Russian attack, and continues to turn to the United States for military support.
Like it or not, the U.S. military will increasingly focus on the Asia-Pacific region as the 21st century progresses. Europeans should therefore focus on defending their continent, abandon decades of discussions with America about improving burden-sharing, and be serious about shouldering the burden of defending itself.