Europe finally seems to take seriously its re -equipment. The German MPs agreed to exclude defense spending from the constitutional boundaries on borrowing. The European Commission is urging Member States to increase their military budgets to 3% of GDP and issue a common debt for funding weapons purchases, moves that could unlock more than 800 billion euros in additional spending within four years.

But if European leaders want to build truly strong military forces that no longer depend on the US, they will have to change the way they spend money on defense, and not just increase the amounts.

To be effective, the new funds must be strategically, efficient and cooperative, which has historically been difficult to manage. Billions of euros in EU joint funding to tackle Covid pandemic, for example, they are reportedly lost due to fraud and waste while there was a problem with accountability.

Previous defense equipment caused fragmentation instead of cooperation. The European Armed Forces have 29 different types of large warships, 27 cannons, 20 fighter aircraft and 17 main tanks. Correspondingly, the US is using four, two, six and one type. This “variety” increases costs and reduces efficiency. Only the integration could release 30% more resources, the European Defense Organization estimates.

Despite the plethora of its weapons systems, Europe is still based on the US for basic military capabilities, which are the core of its safety, such as air transport, anti -missile defense, precision -guided ammunition and information and monitoring systems. In the last decade, European countries have spent $ 100 billion on US weapons. Nearly two-thirds of weapons imports from NATO European countries in the period 2020-2024 came from the US.

The immediate goal should be to strengthen Ukraine’s defense. If the country collapses, this will create instability in the European neighborhood, weaken deterrence, dispel Russia and eventually require even greater defense spending. Realistically, this means that some of the new funds should be allocated for US artillery, anti -missile defense systems and other capabilities, while European defense industries enhance their productive capacity.

To achieve real defensive autonomy will require deeper reforms, many of which are described in a White Bible published by the Commission last week. The top priority is to rationalize defense supplies. European countries often invest in modern warfare equipment or which are not the best utilization of available resources (the British fleet of aircraft carriers is a typical example). It is noteworthy that in 2021, only 18% of European defense supplies were the result of cooperation, much lower than the already moderate target of 35%.

Countries, which often have very different perceptions of security, should quickly agree on a common defense strategy. Leaders must immediately cope with national protectionism, promoting policies that enhance integration and interoperability instead of continuous multiplication. (The Eurofighter fighter and the MBDA Missile Systems SAS, the Pan -European Rocket Construction Club, show that large -scale collaboration is possible).

In addition, European defense industries will need constant, long -term contracts. Companies will invest in the creation of sustainable industrial capacity and the development of specialized workforce only if they can rely on a predictable order of orders.

Finally, Europe’s defense sector must attract more investment from the private sector. Venture capital capital flows in Europe are significantly lacking those in the US. Clear regulatory frameworks and targeted tax reliefs can enhance innovation in emerging technologies such as drones, cyber warfare and electronic warfare.

Although the Commission may encourage these changes, only national governments, uniting their strengths, can implement them. NATO’s existing structures offer a ready -made coordination mechanism. Having for a long time asked his allies to do more, while at the same time discouraging the development of a European defense identity that would remove orders from US companies, the US would now have to welcome and support this process. And America will be stronger if Europe spends more on its defense – and the most smarter spends.