Europe must learn from Ukraine, European Commission president says

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has said Europe must be ready to use force decisively and preemptively to defend itself and should learn from Ukraine's example.

Source: Ursula von der Leyen speaking at the Munich Security Conference, as reported by European Pravda

Details: Von der Leyen highlighted the need for a new European security strategy, including a new doctrine "to ensure that Europe can defend its own territory, economy, democracy and way of life at all times".

"Because this is ultimately the true meaning of independence," she said.

She held Ukraine up as an example, saying it had shown that "strength and deterrence and ultimately lives depend on industrial capacity".

Quote: "They say in Ukraine, 'you change or die'. We must adopt this mantra too. We need to tear down the rigid wall between the civilian and defence sectors. Europe is a powerhouse for car manufacturing, aerospace and heavy machinery. We should not look at these industries as purely commercial but as core to the defence and the defence value chain."

More details: Another lesson from the battlefield in Ukraine, von der Leyen said, is that dual-use technologies such as artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, drones and space must be boosted.

Quote: "And with this approach, we can close our capability gaps quickly. Drones, for example, are the most obvious of these examples. They are inflicting around 80% of battlefield damage on both sides in Ukraine. So we are massively investing and speeding up innovation and production in this area."

More details: In this context, she pointed to the new EU Defence Innovation Office in Kyiv, which is "merging European scale with Ukrainian speed and ingenuity".

Quote: "Some ask whether we can afford this. But I say we cannot afford not to."

More details: Von der Leyen also referred to the slow speed of decision-making in Europe and said the EU should rely on qualified majority support rather than unanimity to prevent attempts by individual countries to block measures.

Background:

• On 16 October, the European Commission presented a comprehensive plan to strengthen Europe's defence capabilities, including measures to counter drones and other threats from the air, sea and space, to EU member states.
• It has also been reported that the EU wants to create a drone alliance with Ukraine in early 2026.

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