Josep Borrell, the EU's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, stated that the European Union plans to build an anti-drone defense system, closely cooperating with NATO, and have it fully operational by the end of 2027.

  This announcement comes after several weeks of drone incursions into the airspace of multiple countries, prompting the EU to declare enhanced countermeasures. Russia has repeatedly denied allegations from the EU and NATO regarding these drone incidents and has warned that the 'drone wall' plan will escalate regional tensions.

  The roadmap also proposes reforms to the EU's military planning and procurement, encouraging member states to jointly procure drones and air defense equipment.

  According to Euronews, this 16-page roadmap document is based on months of discussions between the European Commission and member states. Its sole novelty lies in setting clear timelines and targets for goals identified in previous documents. However, the document does not provide member states with any new financing plans, nor does it reveal specific details or costs for this 'drone wall' or other flagship projects.

Ensuring European Defense 'Self-Sufficiency'

  The 'Defence Preparedness Roadmap 2030' is essentially a list of equipment that national governments need to purchase and deadlines they must meet over the next five years. The European Commission has listed four key projects in this roadmap as priority joint defense procurement items: the 'European Drone Wall,' 'Eastern Flank Monitoring,' 'Air Defence Shield,' and 'Space Defence Shield.'

  Among these, the 'European Drone Wall' aims to enable EU countries to better detect and intercept hostile drones entering their airspace through the joint procurement of equipment such as radars, acoustic centers, counter-drone systems, and low-cost anti-drone rockets. The roadmap notes that EU countries on the Union's eastern border face the greatest direct threat of airspace violations, but any member state could be at risk.

  'Eastern Flank Monitoring' will work to integrate air defense and anti-drone systems with ground defense systems like anti-tank weapons, as well as maritime security in the Baltic and Black Seas. The 'Air Defence Shield' will enable EU countries to establish a multi-layered air defense system. The 'Space Defence Shield' aims to procure equipment to better protect EU space assets.

  The EU has also set a target: to increase the proportion of joint weapons procurement from the current approximately 20% to 40% by the end of 2027. The EU states that member states uniting will allow it to provide more advanced weapons more quickly.

According to the roadmap, the EU will invite its member states to form voluntary coalitions to jointly identify the military equipment they wish to purchase. Each coalition will be led by one or two EU countries. Beyond the aforementioned four projects, member states can propose additional projects.

According to the plan, voluntary coalitions should be formed by early next year, with related projects launching in the first half of 2026. Projects, contracts, and financing for 'key capabilities' (such as drones or satellites) need to be finalized by the end of 2028, with military equipment scheduled for delivery by 2030.

To facilitate joint defense procurement, the EU proposed a loan program totaling 150 billion euros in March, but the budget for this program remains constrained. The European Commission estimates that total EU defense spending this year will reach about 392 billion euros, nearly double the level from four years ago, before the Russia-Ukraine conflict began. The EU believes that defense expenditures over the next decade may require approximately 3.4 trillion euros. To this end, the EU intends to propose increasing the long-term budget for defense and space to 131 billion euros.

  Borrell stated at a press conference in Brussels: "In the coming years, Europe's defense capabilities must be urgently and significantly enhanced." She said Russia currently lacks the capability to attack the EU but could be prepared to do so in the coming years. Even if the Russia-Ukraine conflict ends, "the danger will not disappear."

  European Commissioner for Defence, Andrius Kubilius, mentioned, "What we are creating through the roadmap is European defense self-sufficiency," and "Defense self-sufficiency means independence."

  The European Commission will present the 'Defence Preparedness Roadmap 2030' to the 27 EU leaders at a summit in Brussels next week to gather their feedback.

  Euronews analysis points out that the roadmap aims to incentivize member states to conduct joint procurement to reduce costs, accelerate delivery, narrow capability gaps, and ideally ensure that member states buy European products. However, as one unnamed European Commission official emphasized, "This is not a question of establishing operational structures, that depends on NATO." The European Commission hopes the roadmap will boost the production of European weapon systems, but NATO will retain operational control.

  Last month, airspace violation incidents in several European countries exposed some inefficiencies in NATO's operations, particularly regarding the use of alerts, which could reduce NATO's ability to act in a crisis. Analysis indicates that NATO is heavily influenced by Washington, with the US remaining its largest contributor, but it is widely expected that the US will begin to scale back its presence in Europe.

'Drone Wall' Expanded to Cover Entire EU, But Faces Challenges

  Regarding the 'European Drone Wall' in the roadmap, the original proposal only covered the European eastern flank, but Southern and Western European countries felt excluded. The new plan now covers the entire EU.

  The idea of a 'European Drone Wall' was first proposed in 2024. The envisioned 'wall' would possess advanced reconnaissance, tracking, and interception capabilities, alongside ground defense systems, maritime security forces, and space-based situational awareness, as part of the Eastern Flank Monitoring mechanism.

  This idea gained further traction after Poland experienced a mass drone 'invasion' on September 9 this year. Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski warned on the 14th that Europe should "prepare for Russian strikes deep into Europe." Sikorski also displayed a Shahed-136 drone, downed in Ukraine, in the UK parliament, urging Europe to "stand firmly with Ukraine."

  Marko Mihkelson, Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Estonian Parliament, further stated: "We are concerned that our allies do not understand the urgency [of this plan]."

  Currently, Poland and Denmark, which also experienced drone incidents, are discussing countermeasures with Ukraine. Other EU countries have introduced corresponding policies: The German cabinet passed a resolution on October 8 allowing police to shoot down unidentified drones. On the 10th, Sweden announced it would invest 3.5 billion Swedish krona to increase anti-drone systems.

  Borrell stated that one of the EU's goals is "to establish a drone coalition with Ukraine by early next year." "Ukraine remains Europe's first line of defense," she said.

  Analysis suggests that preventing further drone incursions into EU airspace involves several steps: detecting and identifying the drone, deciding whether to engage it, and applying aerial pressure to prevent the enemy from launching.

  "It's about integrating all air defense assets so they work together. From ground radars, fighter jets, low-cost interceptor drones, missiles, all operational capabilities, to electronic warfare systems for jamming drones. All of this needs to work together 24/7, which is undoubtedly a considerable challenge," Robert Torlast, a researcher at the UK's Royal United Services Institute, told CCTV News.

  Some experts believe the 'drone wall' idea creates a misleading impression about how to stop drones. Hans-Kristian Martisen, Vice President of Defense Projects at Danish drone manufacturer Sky-Watch, believes, "The 'drone wall' can easily be misunderstood as defense only at the border with Russia, but having similar depth defense is equally important."

  However, there is currently no concrete evidence that the drones entering European airspace originated from Russia. Russian President Vladimir Putin has previously described suggestions that Russia might target NATO members as "nonsense." Russia has also stated it has no intention of pushing for further escalation of the situation in Europe, as it could lead to unpredictable consequences.

  Andris Graae, Research Director at the Military Technology Institute of the Royal Danish Defence College, warned that hybrid warfare with Russia could lead to escalation of the conflict.

  Beyond weapons, Paul Strobel, Head of Public Affairs at Quantum Systems, one of Europe's leading drone companies, said that the EU and NATO need to negotiate who is responsible for intercepting drones, and EU member states also need to coordinate and delineate responsibilities among police, military, and border guard forces.

  "If you want a 'drone wall,' you have to see it as part of a broader transformation of the European security architecture. Weapons manufacturers and politicians need to form a common framework, clarify the specifics, before this concept can be implemented," added Sven Krück, CEO of the company.

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Post time:Sep-25-2020