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A Transatlantic Defense Industrial Base? Two Contrasting Views

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The evolving landscape of global defense cooperation has brought the transatlantic relationship between the United States (US) and Europe into sharp focus. As geopolitical tensions rise and the threat environment becomes more complex, the question of how Europe can best ensure its security while navigating its relationship with the United States has become paramount. This double feature report offers two contrasting views on the dynamics of US-Europe defense industrial relations, highlighting the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead for both parties.

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The evolving landscape of global defense cooperation has brought the transatlantic relationship between the United States (US) and Europe into sharp focus. As geopolitical tensions rise and the threat environment becomes more complex, the question of how Europe can best ensure its security while navigating its relationship with the United States has become paramount. This double feature report offers two contrasting views on the dynamics of US-Europe defense industrial relations, highlighting the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead for both parties.

The first text, authored by Jonathan Caverley and Ethan Kapstein, presents a perspective that underscores the limitations of European strategic autonomy in defense. They argue that despite increased defense spending and initiatives like the Draghi Report, Europe remains heavily reliant on the United States for advanced military technology and industrial capabilities. They suggest that Europe should accept a junior partner status within the transatlantic alliance, leveraging US technological superiority to bolster its own defense capabilities. This approach, they contend, would allow Europe to benefit from the most advanced defense systems while acknowledging the economic and industrial realities that constrain its ability to achieve full autonomy.

In the second text, Élie Tenenbaum and Léo Péria-Peigné challenge the overly pessimistic narratives surrounding the European defense industry. They highlight the successes and technological advancements of European defense firms, arguing that Europe has the potential to be a significant player in the global defense market. Tenenbaum and Péria-Peigné question the reliability of US defense supplies, citing concerns over production delays, operational limitations, and stringent export controls. They advocate for a more balanced transatlantic partnership, where Europe can assert its industrial capabilities and strategic autonomy while still cooperating with the United States.

Together, these two texts, respectively written by American and European researchers, weigh on an increasingly heightened debate surrounding transatlantic defense cooperation. They explore the tensions between the need for European strategic autonomy and the benefits of leveraging US technological and industrial strengths. As Europe grapples with the challenges of ensuring its security in an increasingly uncertain world, these perspectives offer valuable insights into the future of defense industrial relations between the United States and Europe. 

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A Transatlantic Defense Industrial Base? Two Contrasting Views

Decoration
Author(s)
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Élie TENENBAUM

Élie TENENBAUM

Intitulé du poste

Director of Ifri’s Security Studies Center

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Léo PÉRIA-PEIGNÉ

Léo PÉRIA-PEIGNÉ

Intitulé du poste

Research Fellow, Security Studies Center, Ifri

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Security Studies Center
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Heir to a tradition dating back to the founding of Ifri, the Security Studies Center provides public and private decision-makers as well as the general public with the keys to understanding power relations and contemporary modes of conflict as well as those to come. Through its positioning at the juncture of politics and operations, the credibility of its civil-military team and the wide distribution of its publications in French and English, the Center for Security Studies constitutes in the French landscape of think tanks a unique center of research and influence on the national and international defense debate.

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European & Transatlantic Security
Accroche centre

The European & Transatlantic Security Program aims to contribute to the strategic debate by developing analyses around three main axes: European defense and the security architecture of the European continent, institutional and strategic links between the Treaty Organization of North Atlantic (NATO) and the European Union (EU), as well as the evolution of the transatlantic relationship.

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Group of kamkazza combat drones against the background of sky and clouds, top view, 3d rendering. Concept: war in Ukraine, drone attack.
Observatory on Future Conflicts
Accroche centre

The Observatory of Future Conflicts is a research program carried out by the French Institute of International Relations and the Foundation for Strategic Research on behalf of the three army headquarters aimed at studying developments in tensions and armaments at the horizon 2040 in a transversal perspective, taking into account the issues of each army.

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Saudi Arabia’s Nuclear Temptations. Lessons Learned from Regional Instability

Date de publication
11 September 2025
Accroche

Saudi Arabia’s integration in the international arena and regional stability, notably through reducing its dependence on fossil energies, are crucial elements for the success of the Kingdom’s Vision 2030, the Crown Prince’s top priority. However, Mohammed bin Salman’s declarations in 2018 and 2021, indicating that “if Iran develops a nuclear bomb, we will follow suit as soon as possible”, combined with the recent strikes on key Iranian nuclear facilities, do not bode well for the future of the Kingdom, the region and the non-proliferation regime at large.

Nour EID
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The Future of Air Superiority. Command of the Air in High Intensity Warfare

Date de publication
24 January 2025
Accroche

Air superiority, understood as control of the air, is a cornerstone of the Western art of warfare. It is a decisive condition, albeit not sufficient by itself, to achieve military victory, as it enables the concentration of air power toward the achievement of wider strategic objectives and protects other components from unbearable attrition levels. It is best achieved through the offensive use of air power in a joint effort to neutralize the enemy’s air power.

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Europe Uncovered?

Date de publication
09 September 2025
Accroche

As Russia continues to threaten Europe, the Trump administration is making no secret of its desire to withdraw—at least partially—from the defense of the Old
Continent in order to focus on strategic competition with China. It is thus putting pressure on its European allies to increase their investment in the military sector. The NATO Summit in The Hague in June 2025 resulted in ambitious commitments by member states to increase their defense spending.

Élie TENENBAUM Guillaume GARNIER
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How should Britain and France cooperate to realise the Northwood Declaration?

Date de publication
18 July 2025
Accroche

During his state visit to the United Kingdom (UK) last week, Emmanuel Macron, President of France, signed a joint declaration with Sir Keir Starmer, Prime Minister, on nuclear cooperation between Britain and France. The Northwood Declaration highlights that while both countries’ nuclear arsenals remain sovereign, cooperation on nuclear deterrence can ‘contribute significantly’ to the security of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) and the Euro-Atlantic region.

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