Europe has to solve its collective defense problemThe Greenland dispute with the US has uncovered a weakness in European defense — the EU has to unite its defense industry, and fastBloombergIf anyone had any doubt, US leaders made it abundantly clear in Davos this week: Wherever things go with Greenland, Europe cannot rely on US security guarantees anymore. Major European nations each have their own military industries: France buys mostly French, Germany buys mostly German. A new German Leopard 2A8 costs an estimated 29 million euros (US$34.3 million); a Russian T-90, about 4 million euros. Each EU country’s contribution to the common defense depends on its fiscal capacity and its individual threat assessment. European nations have no mutual sovereign borrowing mechanism that would allow them to fund rearmament collectively, quickly and cheaply.

Source: Taipei Times January 24, 2026 17:08 UTC