Europe must arm itself in an unstable world

Unlock the White House Watch newsletter for free

Your guide to what Trump’s second term means for Washington, business and the world

The writers are the president of France and chancellor of Germany

As we head for the Nato summit in The Hague, turmoil is all around us: war rages, norms erode and old certainties are challenged. In these testing times, Germany and France — together with our European and transatlantic friends and allies — stand united and strong, to defend our common values as well as the freedom and security of our citizens.

The main source of instability for Europe comes from Russia, which has been waging an imperialist war, with its invasions of Georgia in 2008, then of Crimea and Donbas in 2014, then the whole of Ukraine in 2022. Vladimir Putin’s objective is to undermine European security to Moscow’s advantage. There is a methodical attempt on the part of Russia to exercise coercive tutelage over its neighbours, to seek to destabilise European countries and to challenge the global order. We cannot accept it, because our aim is to protect and preserve peace on our continent.

For as long as the current trajectory lasts, Russia will find in France and Germany an unshakeable determination. What is at stake will determine European stability for the decades to come.

At the Nato summit, France and Germany will reaffirm their support for US efforts to bring an end to the war, with a solid and lasting peace, preserving Ukraine’s sovereignty and our security. We will stress, in particular, the urgent necessity of a ceasefire, backed up by a determination to increase pressure on Russia, including through sanctions. We will ensure that Ukraine emerges from this war prosperous, robust and secure, and will never live again under the fear of Russian aggression.

Much has been done already. The EU, its member states and the UK have provided €130bn of support to Kyiv. Together we have condemned and sanctioned Russia. There is more to come. We will increase our support to the Ukrainian armed forces. We will invest collectively in Ukraine’s defence industry. Furthermore, we will, in co-ordination with the UK, ensure that Ukraine’s future military is large enough and equipped to deter any new invasion.

But shouldering our responsibilities goes beyond Ukraine. We will live for the foreseeable future in a deeply destabilised environment, and in a world in which our allies will have other dilemmas and priorities. Beyond Russia, we will still have many challenges to face, from terrorism to the protection of our territories, citizens and interests across the globe. We will have to rise to these challenges. Not because someone asks us to, but because we are clear-eyed and owe it to our citizens to do so.

France and Germany now spend more than 2 per cent of their GDP on defence. We will go beyond that, with the aim, ultimately, of reaching 3.5 per cent in core defence spending and 1.5 per cent in broader expenses contributing to the defence effort. This will be our way of strengthening the European pillar of Nato.

French and German forces are already deployed on the eastern flank of Europe, as “framework nations” in Lithuania and Romania. Our troops make significant contributions in Poland and Estonia, in the Baltic and the Mediterranean seas, and in European airspace, supporting intelligence, space and cyber operations of the alliance.

The additional expenses will allow us to fill the gaps in military capability, faced with a revisionist Russia. We will work alongside all allies to sustain the credibility of our posture in all domains.

Nuclear deterrence will remain the cornerstone of the alliance’s security. France’s independent strategic nuclear forces contribute significantly to the overall security of Nato; and Germany contributes to the alliance’s nuclear sharing arrangements. Additionally, we will work towards a reform of our procurement systems by applying the “three S’s”: standardisation, simplification and scale.

We will also work to ensure good co-operation between the EU and Nato. Stronger and more capable European defence contributes positively to global and transatlantic security and is both complementary to and interoperable with Nato. This is vital to filling critical capability gaps through industrial investment at the European level, and to maintaining our technological edge.

In a nutshell, showing unity against all threats, providing support to Ukraine and stating our determination to develop European defence capabilities and our industrial base through increased defence spending and investment are all part of the same equation. We unambiguously reaffirm allied unity, allied solidarity and a commitment to the freedom, peace and security of our continent.