Can Europe Still Meet Its Military Obligations?

Can Europe Shoulder Its Military Burden On Its Own? -- Sara Miller Llana, Christian Science Monitor

As the US turns to Asia, pressure is rising on the EU to police itself, North Africa, and the Mideast.

When in March 2011 the United Nations Security Council created a "no fly" zone in Libya, it was British and French armed forces that launched the intervention against the regime of Muammar Qaddafi.

Not two years later, as a European Union training mission stalled while radical Islamic rebels gained a foothold in northern Mali, France acted unilaterally, sending 2,500 troops last January to its former colony in the Sahel.

These are the exact scenarios the United States has said it envisions for the 21st century.

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My Comment: The Europeans lack many of the essential tools necessary for a sustained military commitment. A lack of aerial tankers is only the tip of the iceberg on what they are missing .... they also lack the necessary transport/naval assets/and a steady supply of ordinances to function properly in a war-zone.

If the economy was sound, I am sure that the Europeans would invest the necessary funds to have a proper military .... but their economy is not sound .... and more to the point .... government coffers and the political will to address these issues are empty.

Update: A must read article on how cutbacks have taken their toll on European armies is here.