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Search data reflects rising concern. In countries closest to Russia, online searches such as âwhere is my nearest shelter?â and âwhat to pack for evacuation?â have surgedâparticularly in 2025.
What Brussels Is Doing Behind the Scenes
National governments are not acting alone.
At the EU level, Brussels has launched what may be the most ambitious defence coordination effort in its history.
European defence spending surpassed âŹ300 billion in 2024. Under the proposed 2028â2034 EU budget, an additional âŹ131 billion has been earmarked for aerospace and defenceâfive times more than in the previous budget cycle.
At the heart of the strategy is Readiness 2030, a roadmap endorsed by all 27 member states.
Its goals are practical and urgent:
Enable troop and equipment movement across EU borders within three days in peacetime
Reduce that to six hours during emergencies
Eliminate bureaucratic delays through a âMilitary Schengenâ system
To achieve this, the EU is identifying and upgrading around 500 critical infrastructure points, including bridges, tunnels, ports, and railways capable of supporting heavy military equipment.
The estimated cost ranges between âŹ70 and âŹ100 billion, funded through a mix of national budgets and EU programs such as the Connecting Europe Facility.
ReArm Europe: The Financial Engine Behind the Push
NATO Should Start Preparing Troops For a Nuclear Battlefield â Defense One
In 2025, Brussels launched ReArm Europe, a central coordination platform designed to align national defence investments and accelerate industrial capacity.
Europeâs defence sector has long suffered from fragmentationâmultiple national systems, incompatible equipment, and duplicated procurement. ReArm Europe aims to change that.
Under its umbrella are two key tools:
EDIP (European Defence Industry Programme)
âŹ1.5 billion for joint research, development, and production
Projects must involve at least three EU countries (or two plus Ukraine)
SAFE (Strategic Armament Financing Envelope)
âŹ150 billion EU-level loan facility
Enables joint weapons procurement at lower cost and faster speed
Together, these mechanisms encourage countries to pool resources, negotiate better contracts, and ensure new systems can work together seamlessly.
Why the United States Is Pushing Europe Harder Than Ever
Pressure from Washington has intensified.
The U.S. national security strategy published on December 4 described Europe as a weakened partner and reaffirmed an âAmerica Firstâ posture. The document echoed long-standing complaints from former President Donald Trump about European defence spending.
Washington expects Europe to assume most of NATOâs conventional defence responsibilities by 2027âa timeline many European officials privately call unrealistic.
At the 2025 NATO summit in The Hague, allies agreed to aim for 5% of GDP in defence spending by 2035. Most European countries remain well below that threshold.
The strategy also criticised Europeâs migration policies, demographic trends, and regulatory approach, while signalling Washingtonâs interest in eventually stabilising relations with Russia.
This has fuelled concerns in Brussels that Europe may no longer be able to rely on unconditional U.S. security guarantees.
Europe Pushes Back
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