‘We have outsourced our security to the Americans for too long’ says Frederik Vansina, the chief of the Belgian defence staff. He is clear: Europe urgently needs to become stronger militarily. We need to take the Russian president's ‘imperialist dream’ at face value, the defence chief argues. ‘Sooner or later there will be a time for dialogue, but as long as weapons speak, we must make sure we are stronger.’
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Defence chief urges Belgian government to act with speed: ‘The only language Putin understands is tough military power’
Colin Clapson
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‘It is humiliating to note that security in Europe is being discussed without Europeans,’ says defence chief Frederik Vansina. He is referring to the talks between Russia and the US on the war in Ukraine.
‘We can only applaud French president Macron's initiative of trying to gather a number of leaders together. Europe needs to start looking after its own security and it is urgent. We have outsourced security to the Americans for too long.’
To start off with, Vansina advocates stronger national armies. ‘A European army is not realistic at the minute, Europe is not yet ready for that,’ he says. He is, however, open to strategic collaboration at the European level. The Belgian and Dutch navies already work closely together, for example, and there is already strategic cooperation with France with regard to army vehicles.
Vladimir Putin's ‘imperialist dream’
What is the purpose of strengthening European military power? ‘To deter potential aggressors.’ Vansina eyes Russia, which is currently fighting a war in Ukraine. ‘The only language Putin understands is tough military power,’ he says.
The threat that the Russian president wants to intervene beyond Ukraine is very real, according to Vansina. ‘For Putin, the collapse of the Soviet Union was a disaster. He clearly says he still wants to fulfil that imperialist dream.’
‘The Russian army in Ukraine today numbers some 600,000 troops. Putin says he wants to increase his forces to 1.5 million. Russia's economy has now also completely turned into a war economy. The question is: what does he intend to do?’
Russian war tactics, by the way, have not changed since World War II, according to Vansina. ‘In the West, we operate in a very controlled way. We eliminate what we have to eliminate. When Russia goes to war, everything is completely destroyed. And then a second time, just to be sure.’
‘Boots on the ground’ in Ukraine?
Belgian defence minister Theo Francken (Flemish nationalist/N-VA) takes it for granted that Belgium will also send troops to Ukraine if a peace agreement is reached with Russia. ‘Such an agreement has to be enforced by an international force and Belgium will have to do its part,’ he said last month.
Vansina, when asked about Belgian ‘boots on the ground’ in Ukraine, is less forthright. ‘We are not that far yet. There has to be a peace agreement first.’ He does stress that Belgium is capable of providing assistance, if needed. ‘Belgium has very competent troops, both on land, at sea and in the air. But that will all have to be determined once a peace agreement is in place.’
According to the army chief, the central question in such a peace deal, is: ‘How are we going to stop the Russians from again invading Ukraine in a few years?’ This brings him straight back to his earlier plea. ‘Deterrence.’
NATO standard by 2029? ‘That's way too late.’
A stronger army, of course, costs money. The new federal government does realise the ‘sense of urgency’, according to Vansina, and the army chief is happy that additional investments in defence are being made, but he says it should all be done a bit faster.
The coalition agreement states that Belgium wants to reach the NATO norm of 2 per cent of GDP on defence spending by 2029. ‘That is much too late,’ the defence chief insists. Kaja Kallas, the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, also called on Belgium yesterday finally to fulfil the promise made 10 years ago.
‘This is not just about Belgium,’ Vansina stresses. ‘Everyone in Europe realises that now is the time to do more to guarantee the security of our people.’