Europe needs big defence players to catch up with US, says Belgian minister

Theo Francken says bloc’s fragmentation and high costs push European governments towards US weapons

“We need somebody who says, OK, guys, we’re in deep shit,” Francken said.

4 comments

Why can’t they just put a big negative number in their balance books and continue with their day like the US does when it feels like it?
- there's a saying "if it can be done, you can afford it"...it means that money is never the problem for currency-issuing entities, like "Europe". They always have enough Euros.
  
  What is needed are the resources to do the thing - labour, material, organization.
  
  A state can gently steer the resources using money as an inducement. Or it can just do it with power and laws.
  
  Of course, creating Euros in this way means that the Euros aren't being created in the same way they are now - which is by paying them to those who already hold Euro bonds, and that makes them upset, and that's why it will take a while to happen.
  
  That was a genuinely helpful perspective, thanks!
France has been trying since the 50s. It would be ironic if the UK would be post brexit but they cant find the money. The Finns could give it a go.