Europe's defence build-up delivers real results for NATO one year on

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When the European Union announced its unprecedented defense investment agenda last year, many in America questioned whether Europe would deliver. Some argued we were too slow to rearm, too fragmented to strengthen our defense industry, or too accustomed to relying on U.S. military power. One year later, Europe’s answer is not a press release or promise. It is budgets approved, production expanding, procurement accelerating, and capabilities being delivered.

This is not a temporary surge. It is a structural shift to taking care of our own backyard. It will take time, to be sure, but the tracks are laid and the train has left the station. We invite our American friends to judge us not by old assumptions, but by the record we are building together.

When I last wrote in these pages , in 2025, we had a plan – Readiness 2030 , a nearly one trillion-dollar roadmap to buy new weapons and technological equipment. It signaled a fundamental rethink of the EU’s role in European defense spending, and big opportunities for American defense firms.

Today, we’re making that plan happen. Let’s look at what’s already advancing - Europe collectively spent 2.1% of GDP on defense in 2025, above NATO’s benchmark. Frontline allies like Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia are moving toward spending 5% of GDP. Eighteen member states have already taken the next step under the EU’s new $200 billion defense financing program. And the first $6 billion-plus is already being deployed to help countries procure faster, strengthen defense production and deliver the capabilities Europe and NATO need.

Bigger budgets are only part of the story. Europe has fundamentally changed how it thinks about defense. The era when Europe outsourced too much of its security is over. New factories are opening, existing production lines are expanding, and private investment is flowing into next-generation drones, armored vehicles, artificial intelligence and electronic warfare. That investment is already translating into new industrial partnerships. At the NATO Summit, Lockheed Martin and Rheinmetall announced plans to produce ATACMS missiles in a newly opened production plant in Germany, the first time the system will be manufactured outside the United States.

We’re also changing how Europe buys defense. For too long, 27 national defense markets operated under 27 different sets of rules, creating duplication, delays and unnecessary costs. The European Union is helping bring those markets together, making it easier for countries to procure jointly, invest together and give industry the predictable demand it needs to expand production and deliver capabilities faster. These initiatives and more are helping Europe move from fragmentation towards integration.

None of this comes at America’s expense. Quite the opposite. As Europe invests more in its own defense, the alliance as a whole becomes more resilient and better prepared for the threats we face together. Europeans remain the largest customers of the U.S. defense industry, accounting for nearly 40% of U.S. arms exports (worth $130 billion) – and supporting American manufacturing, innovation and high-skilled jobs. At the same time, more than half of European defense procurement continues to come from U.S. suppliers. Europe’s defense investment is creating a larger market, and as that market grows, so do the opportunities for American defense companies.

Let me be clear - this buildup is not about replacing the United States. It’s about becoming a stronger, more capable ally and balanced partner in a security relationship that benefits both sides of the Atlantic and keeps deterrence credible.

One year ago, we promised action. Today, Europe is delivering – and learning valuable lessons in what works and what doesn’t. A powerful example of this is Putin’s war in Ukraine. Together, the EU and its member countries have mobilized more than $300 billion in support for Ukraine, making Europe the largest provider of overall assistance. Importantly, a significant share of military support is being spent with U.S. defense companies through joint procurement and European-funded purchases, reinforcing both Ukraine’s defense and the transatlantic industrial base.

The lesson from Ukraine is clear: modern warfare rewards speed, adaptability and scale.

Europe has become very good, our defense commissioner Andrius Kubilius recently argued , at producing “haute couture missiles” – highly sophisticated and expensive systems. The next challenge is to combine that excellence and attention to detail with the ability to produce “good enough” capabilities at scale, including drones and other rapidly deployable systems. In other words, I am reminded of the English idiom “don’t let perfect be the enemy of good.”

Later this year, the EU will formulate its vision for securing the region in our new European Security Strategy. It will help shape the next chapter of Europe’s defense transformation.

Stay tuned – we are just getting started.

Jovita Neliupšienė is the ambassador of the European Union to the United States.