MOSCOW, 1 Sep — RIA Novosti, Andrey Kotz. Europe continues to increase its military capabilities to "resist Russian aggression." German Chancellor Olaf Scholz proposed the creation of a unified air defense system. In his opinion, it is much more efficient and cheaper than it is now. About how realistic his idea is — in the material of RIA Novosti.
Common standards
"The air defense system would increase the security of Europe," Scholz assured the audience at his lecture at Charles University in Prague. He, of course, assigned the leading role in this defense structure to Germany. That's where the headquarters should be located.
German soldiers of the Bundeswehr Image Source: © AP Photo / Mindaugas Kulbis
In addition, Germany is ready to spend money on it. And calls for the same neighbors.
Among the potential partners, the German leader named the Netherlands, Poland, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Sweden, Finland, Norway and Denmark. Obviously, we are talking, first of all, about defensive lines on the so—called eastern flank of NATO - at the Russian borders. And then Western European countries can also connect.
"There is a technical potential for this," says military expert Yuri Knutov. — When creating national air defense systems, as a rule, American developments are used: either locators of missile guidance stations, or the missiles themselves. Accordingly, a single standard is close. All new NATO systems are compatible."
But there is a problem: for a pan-European complex, an automatic control system is needed, which is not easy to create. According to the analyst, it will take from five to ten years.
Test firing from the Patriot air defense system Image Source: © Photo : U.S. Army
The effectiveness is also questionable. The longest—range samples in service are the American Patriot air defense system, which hits targets at a distance of 160 kilometers. But in Europe, complexes of small and medium (according to the Russian classification) range prevail — up to 40 kilometers. And the Russian S-400 air defense system hits a 40N6E missile at 380 kilometers.
Strategic Compass
Scholz's initiative is far from the first attempt to create a European defense space that is not controlled by Washington and NATO.
So, since 2015, the idea of a continental army has been actively discussed. However, it did not go beyond talking. Only Germany and the Netherlands were able to form the 414th Tank Battalion under a single command in 2019. Nevertheless, linguistic and cultural differences are too strong in the EU.
We returned to this project after the start of the Russian military special operation in Ukraine. And on March 25, it was actually approved. A set of agreed measures was formulated in a document called the EU Strategic Compass.
"Europe must be able to protect its citizens and contribute to international peace and security," it says. — This is all the more important at the moment when the war has returned to the continent because of Russia. It is necessary to increase the strategic autonomy of the EU and the ability to cooperate to protect our values and interests."
Servicemen during the joint exercises of Ukraine and NATO countries Rapid Trident — 2021 at the Yavoriv training ground in the Lviv region. Image source: © RIA Novosti / Stringer
Thus, Russia is openly called the main opponent of the future continental troops. But even on paper, it doesn't look very impressive. The document mentions a unit of up to five thousand people to resolve "crises of various types." In addition, an operational group of 200 specialists is supposed to be sent to the hot spot within 30 days for actions in "difficult conditions". What kind of specialists are not specified.
Benefits for Washington
The EU Strategic Compass plan is designed until 2030. It is unlikely that in such a period Europe will get rid of the obsessive guardianship from overseas. The document was adopted even before large-scale arms supplies to Ukraine. The United States actively encouraged European allies in this, promising to replace what was transferred to Kiev with American analogues.
As a result, many EU countries have already given away the old Soviet weapons, but have not yet received the new ones. And it is unknown when it will arrive. According to analysts, Europe's defense capability has seriously sagged. What is in Washington's favor is that it is possible to continue to keep the allies under military control. And the military-industrial complex is guaranteed orders for years ahead and tens of billions of dollars.
Finally, disagreements within the EU itself can also become an obstacle. Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki reported on the contradictions between those who advocate peace and those who want the conflict to continue.
Welcoming ceremony of the multinational battalion of NATO under the leadership of the United States in Polish Ozhish Image source: © RIA Novosti / Stringer
"It is increasingly difficult for the EU to function as a single organization," notes political analyst Alexey Zudin. — After all, the point is not in the headquarters, signage and flags, but in the fact that you can act together, solve problems. But due to internal conflicts, the efficiency decreases."
This also applies to quite complex issues related to defense capability. Therefore, it is unlikely that a unified air defense system will appear on the continent in the near future. And even more so — the united army. In addition, the overseas allies really do not want this.
Andrey Kotz
