According to the Financial Times journalists, EU countries face a personnel shortage in their own armies amid the threat of possible Russian aggression.
Points of attention
- EU countries face the problem of a shortage of soldiers in their own armies, exacerbated by the threat of Russian aggression.
- According to the Financial Times, in the event of an armed attack by Russia, European countries can use only part of the military, not exceeding 300,000.
- Defence planning in Europe needs additional personnel to counter Russian aggression effectively.
- The number of military personnel in EU countries, including Germany, France, and Italy, has decreased in recent years, causing a military shortage.
- The size of the military contingent is important in confronting aggressive states, so it is important to ensure sufficient numbers for effective defence.
How many armies do the EU countries have to repel Russia's probable aggression?
As the publication's journalists note, in the event of an armed attack by Russia, EU countries will be able to deploy no more than 300,000 troops.
The article notes that after Russia's large-scale attack on Ukraine in 2022, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced Zeitenwende — a "turning point" in his country's defence spending policy.
These costs have increased significantly over the past two years, but the problem of the lack of military personnel has not been solved.
Journalists emphasize that the German army currently consists of 181,000 service members, and for the entire staff strength, it still lacks about 20,000 people.
The publication notes that Germany currently has the most significant shortage of military personnel among other EU countries, but it is not the only one.
As journalists note, the British army has been failing annual recruitment targets for many years.
Last year, the land corps of the British army lost 4 thousand soldiers.
France has the largest army among EU countries, with 203,000 people.
However, the French army also remains incomplete in terms of personnel.
In general, the size of the French army has decreased by 8% over the past ten years.
The army's size in Italy decreased from 200,000 to 200,000 in ten years to 160,900 today.
Why would it be problematic for EU countries to field a large army in the event of a Russian attack?
According to the documents, the EU member states of NATO have a total of 1.9 million military personnel, which at first glance is sufficient to oppose the Russian army, which has 1.1 million military personnel.
However, it will be difficult for the EU countries to involve even a total of about 300,000 military personnel in the probable hostilities.
NATO's defense planning in Europe for many years has been about "Are you ready to provide 300 special forces for Afghanistan" and nothing to do with mass. This created gaps. We are observing a reduction in forces across the continent year after year, — explains Camille Grand, an employee of the European Council on International Relations and, until 2022, the Assistant Secretary General of NATO.
The authors of the material emphasize that, in a certain sense, the number of personnel is a rough indicator of military potential, as demonstrated by Russia's criminal attack on Ukraine.
However, even in technologically advanced armies, numbers are still critical, as small units have limited ability to withstand casualties. The deterrence factor is also crucial.
If a crisis arises, we must be able to convince the Russian side that not only the Polish army stands in their way, but also the "cavalry", Grand emphasises.
