War in Mideast Tests Europe’s Military Might. The Verdict? Mixed.
To defend allies from Iran, the continent’s powers have mounted a rare show of force. But those efforts have diverted limited resources from other hot spots. Despite refusing to join the attacks on Iran, Europe’s leaders have responded to the widening war in the Middle East by sending warships, fighter jets and air-defense systems to protect bases and allies in the region.
[...]
Some analysts noted that the deployment had forced France to pull out of what a NATO official described as a show-of-force mission to deter Russia in the Baltic Sea.
Others said that France had shown allies in the Arab world, Europe and the United States that Paris was an ally to depend on — and that the speed of the deployment had shown up Britain.
[...]
Élie Tenenbaum, a security expert at the French Institute of International Relations, a research group in Paris, said the advantages of deploying to the Gulf outweighed the costs of briefly leaving waters off Russia.
“Sure, they are not in the North Atlantic patrolling or hunting Russian subs in the Sea of Norway,” Mr. Tenenbaum said. “But it’s not like we are facing an immediate attack by Russia.”
[...]
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