Giuseppe Spatafora

Graph showing the 'snail pace' of R&D in the EU compared to US R&D. While overall defence spending among EU Member States has gone up, investment in defence R&D is not keeping pace with procurement.

💡 The EU can address both its security & competitiveness crises with a new tool: increased defence budgets.

Europe has the opportunity to spark a dual-use tech boom that could boost its deterrence and industrial growth, argue @joristeer.bsky.social & @gspataf95.bsky.social. www.iss.europa.eu/pu...

Maybe that's the point...pressure on spending 5% quickly will lead to pressure to buy off the shelf american...

Spending 5 per cent on defence doesn’t make Nato stronger An arbitrary target won’t enhance members’ capabilities or co-ordination and encourages creative accounting

While no one disputes that Europe needs to do more for its defence, the focus on defence spending percentage of GDP won’t get us there. Indeed, making Europeans commit to an arbitrary spending target is the best way to keep Europe from reaching strategic autonomy.

My rant in the @financialtimes.com

Absolutely yes. And the keyword here is "strategic": it's not smart to give yourself the means without the ends, and Europeans are clearly failing in defining the ends.

OPINION - Eurofighter Typhoon agreement: Türkiye, Europe, and the future of defense cooperation Turkish army, the 2nd-largest force in NATO, appears a natural substitute for decreased US presence in Europe. Türkiye’s role in patrolling the Black Sea, protecting NATO’s southern flank, and reachin...

Glad to be back on @anadoluajansicom.bsky.social to discuss the Turkish acquisition of Eurofighter Typhoons: is it a step forward in defence integration w. Europe? Pragmatism wins, but structural issues remain. @euiss.bsky.social www.aa.com.tr/en/europe/op...

Short reading x the summer break: Europe should be ready for the US NDS & force posture review - coming up in late summer/fall. We should hope for the best but prepare for the worst. My latest @euiss.bsky.social commentary:

Inside Trump's Frantic, Failing Mission to Crush the Epstein 'MAGA Rebellion' President Donald Trump and his administration are doing everything they can to make MAGA forget about Jeffrey Epstein. They are failing.

NEW: “They won’t shut the fuck up about it,” Trump privately vented — referring to conservative influencers and media types lashing out over the Epstein memo — according to a source with direct knowledge of the matter.

Vipin and I welcome Austin Long to the show (and MIT CNSP) Austin Long joins us to discuss damage limitation (shocking, I know), arms races and arms control, the recent UK-France Northwood Declaration, and more

1. This is a very rich podcast discussion between Vipin Narang, Pranay Vaddi & Austin Long (who did nuclear policy on the joint staff until recently). Covers UK-France nuclear co-op but most interesting bits are on the US policy of 'damage limitation' strategicsimplicity.substack.com/p/vipin-and-...

Rutte really deserves an award for his handling of Trump.
Yes, this may not stick and Trump is at the same time seeking to weaken Europe with tariffs.
But on security this is the best day for Europe during Trump's time in the White House.

Lastly, if Bridge Colby is going to halt Patriot deliveries because of low US stockpiles - a real concern. The Pentagon should then tell Europeans to ramp up production of European systems. They aren't conveying that. Instead, State is sticking to its same old buy-American talking points.

this is overall a suboptimal outcome for European defense. In a high-end attritional war, Europe would want its own production capacity even if its system wasn't quite as good. But it won't get better w/o orders. More orders, more capital, more innovation. As SAMP-T is used it w/d get better.

Glad to be on @france24.com "The Debate" last night with @francoisf24.bsky.social & other excellent guests to discuss "Deterrence made in Europe", the 🇬🇧-🇫🇷 summit, the Ukraine Recovery Conference, and the latest developments in the White House regarding Ukraine. Link below:

🌐 The US is not the only force driving the current aid crisis. European governments and institutions are cutting development assistance, too. Who will fill the void?

Find out more in our latest Munich Security Analysis: securityconference.org/en/publicati...

UK and France vow to co-ordinate nuclear weapons for first time Announcement marks increase in co-operation between allies amid growing threat from Russia

The nuclear discussion (and strategy) in Europe is changing quite a bit right now.

www.ft.com/content/eb83...

Europe is ramping up defence spending but this isn’t just about security. It’s a chance to spark a dual-use tech boom that could power Europe’s competitiveness. A thread🧵⤵️

Geopolitical Europe Summer Reading List is out!

geopoliticaleurope.substack.com/p/geopolitic...

Great to speak at the @consilium.europa.eu Library with Lizza 😊

Ready to support the strategic direction of the Institute?

We are looking for our new Head of people & administration.

⏰ Apply by 28 August, 12:00 CEST
🔗 ow.ly/IHG550WlAyM

#EUjobs

Italy’s Bridge to Nowhere Shows Defense-Boom Risks The era of greenwashing is giving way to defense-washing. It won’t make Europe stronger.

Glad that The brief was quoted on @opinion.bloomberg.com 's column by @lionellaurent.bsky.social: "EUISS think tank recommends focusing on disruptive research and innovation... more measures to attract top scientific talent and putting more European funding to work" www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti...

More defence spending is necessary - but it could be done right or wrong. One good way is for Europe to invest on dual-use technologies, essential for contemporary warfare but also key to enhance our competitiveness. @joristeer.bsky.social www.iss.europa.eu/publications...

This is just punitive.

It also sends a signal of how little this Pentagon cares about European security. Any European leader taking solace from the NATO summit needs to look at this and ask what cuts are they planning for Europe? They ain’t gonna be superficial

Hegseth halted weapons for Ukraine despite military analysis that the aid wouldn’t jeopardize U.S. readiness The move blindsided the State Department, Ukraine, European allies and members of Congress, who demanded an explanation from the Pentagon.

“analysis by senior military officers found that the [now suspended Ukraine] aid package would not jeopardize the American military’s own ammunition supplies, according to three U.S. officials.” www.nbcnews.com/news/militar...

How can Europe use the additional money for defence in a way that also makes its industries for the 4th industrial revolution? @joristeer.bsky.social and I wrote a brief for @euiss.bsky.social on tackling the security & competitiveness crisis, & driving a dual-use tech boom. 👇

27% of French see the US now as an adversary. (16% in Germany, 18% in the UK)

Most still think the US is a necessary partner - but no longer an ally

Poll instituteforglobalaffairs.org/wp-content/u...

How Europe can live with NATO’s ill-conceived defence spending target A joint approach to defence as a European public good is the only viable option for EU countries to spend 5% of GDP on defence

🛡️ How Europe can live with NATO’s ill-conceived defence spending target

💭 With many EU member states already fiscally constrained, could joint financing make the new 5% target realisable?

🖊️ Roel Beetsma, Marco Buti and @francesconicoli.bsky.social
🔗 buff.ly/kihr3Dx

Too much, too fast: Europe’s defence-spending tsunami is coming This week’s NATO summit sees defence spending at the top of the agenda. But, at the current estimation, Europe risks rearming at an unsustainable pace. This could waste resources and trigger political...

Stark warning: "But the tsunami of new money to be dispensed at breakneck speed risks simply overwhelming managerial capacities throughout the defence enterprise—and encouraging a reversion to old practices if a desperate effort to cope": ecfr.eu/article/too-...

Finland hails plan for allies to join NATO land forces on its soil Finnish Defence Minister Antti Hakkanen hailed plans on Wednesday for six NATO member states including Britain and France to participate in land forces that are to be established in northern Finland.

#Finnland begrüßt die Pläne von sechs #NATO-Partnern (🇸🇪, 🇬🇧 ,🇫🇷 ,🇳🇴,🇩🇰,🇮🇸) den Forward Land Forces (FLF) beitreten zu wollen, die im Norden des Landes stationiert werden sollen. Im Krisenfall könnten dann Truppen & Material in Brigade-Größe dorthin verlegt werden.
www.reuters.com/business/aer...

Great view by @maxbergmann.bsky.social : the (unintended?) consequences of promising 5% of GDP for defence. Keeping Trump in was the only goal of the summit. The hard part begins now.

UK government announces that it will in fact buy F-35A and join NATO nuclear sharing. The UK will purchase 12 F-35As and join NATO’s nuclear mission. gov.uk/government/new…

Less than two weeks ago the SDR external reviewers had implied they were not keen on that choice (below).

NATO's incessant focus on abstract spending targets instead of European militaries bigger structural challenges is a form of brain death.