Europeans: Is this a game changer?

[Vuk]

I remember the arguments I had with certain members of this board on Europe's defense capabilities (), and it was said again and again that Russia was not significant threat. Do you consider this to be a game changer? Do you still think that Russia is no significant threat?

[Greyblades]

Eh, it was going to happen sooner or later.
As for the question: maybe, but not yet, its still going to take a few years, maybe a decade, to build 100 warships etc.

[Kagemusha]

Russia has had several re armament plans ever since the end of Soviet Union. Non of which have fully materialized. You can plan on being the master of universe, but with GDP of Spain, that is hardly possible. If Russia wants to bancrupt herself with armaments programs, then they wil only be less of a threat. The fact is that currently Russia is doing lot of nice business with EU and vice versa, which benefits both parties. War would be bit bad for such business.

[Rhyfelwyr]

The article didn't portray it is a big threat...

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

"These are all designs from the late Soviet period, and not really new at all," says Alexander Golts, military expert with the online newsmagazine Yezhednevny Zhurnal. "The lack of fresh designs shows the underlying weakness of our military-industrial complex."

...


Critics say that despite the huge sums of money slated to be injected into the rearmament program, it is far short of the amounts needed to revive Russia's moribund military-industrial complex, which has lost the vast network of subcontractors that existed in Soviet times.

"This is not the first time the Kremlin has talked about military modernization," says Golts. "But all previous programs have failed."

And looks like it's not like this hasn't been tried before either...

[gaelic cowboy]

I wouldn't be a bit surprised if half the money is merely to pay people there actual wages and prevent stuff they already have from falling apart.

ten euro says half the money will never spent and the other will be badly spent.

[Husar]

Soone or later all this will be integrated into the European Defense Force that we're going to establish, so we can only benefit in the long run.

[Louis VI the Fat]

It means that Russia can be added to the long list of sad countries that give preference to the army over social considerations. One of the lowest life expectancies in Europe, but the oil revenue is diverted towards satisfying the wishes of sad little men and their love of all things military.


Not all is bad though. I'm sure a lot of Russian boys, and men, are reading about this with their trousers down their ankles.

[Louis VI the Fat]

Soone or later all this will be integrated into the European Defense Force that we're going to establish, so we can only benefit in the long run.

In the short run we are benefitting too, the orders are flooding in. They sell us oil, we sell them warships.

Then they can use these warships to threaten not to sell us oil. Which, of course, they won't do, because then they can't buy more warships. It is a sad world, ran by sad little men.