The EU’s ability to respond to a foreign invasion by 2030 remains in doubt due to a continuing reliance on the US and fragmented national defence systems, according to a report from its official auditor.
The European court of auditors (ECA) said the EU was much better prepared than before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine of 2022, but achieving its goal of defence readiness by the end of the decade would be difficult.
“Achieving defence preparedness in the EU by 2030 remains challenging,” said Marek Opioła, an ECA member who led the review of the EU’s defence policy published on Thursday. “There are still major difficulties such as fragmented national systems or industrial bottlenecks. We also still rely on the United States.”
