In the wake of recent statements from the USA that have cast doubt on the country’s continued commitment to European security, several European nations have recently made a series of announcements related to their own defence.
The article linked below addresses the understandable reaction this has created in Europe, and argues that a rapid and massive strengthening of European air defence and missile defence is the most pressing task to be able to counter potential Russian aggression independently.
Europe faces a real challenge in matching or countering Russia’s offensive capabilities. The current state of European air defence and missile defence is significantly underfunded in terms of both the number of deployed systems and the industrial capacity to maintain them. The scale of the necessary increase in defensive resources and production is considerable, requiring a coordinated and rapid effort to close the gap and establish a credible deterrent. Figures suggest that for every type of offensive weapon Russia can field in significant numbers, Europe needs a multiple increase in its defensive capabilities.
Offensive firepower vs. defensive capacity
Three years after a real cessation of hostilities, Russia is estimated to have the ability to have re-established a weapons stockpile of thousands of ballistic and cruise missiles and a huge number of attack drones.
Europe currently has fewer than 50 long-range anti-ballistic batteries, around 100 medium-range, and 200 short-range batteries to counter this. This suggests a significant numerical imbalance favoring Russia’s offensive capabilities.
Production rate vs. need
Russia’s annual production of key missiles (Iskander-M, Kh-101, Kalibr) is in the hundreds, and attack drones in the thousands.
Europe needs to produce over 1500 anti-ballistic missiles, over 1200 medium-range missiles, and over 5000 short-range missiles annually just to potentially match the threat and replenish stockpiles. This highlights a significant industrial production gap that needs to be closed.
Necessary increase in European defence
Europe needs to more than double (2.5 times) its current number of long-range, medium-range, and short-range air defence systems to represent a credible threshold. This is a huge task in terms of procurement and deployment.
Image: AI
