A rash of global crises is creating the ideal setting for the rebirth of a muscular and dominant European military. From the Congo to the Horn of Africa, Afghanistan to Georgia, Europe’s military presence is broadening. The demand for a strong and united Europe to play a central role on the international scene is rapidly intensifying.

Now, with their troops embarking on their latest adventure into Lebanon, a number of European politicians and military leaders are coming to a stark realization. They are realizing that in order to have a sustained international military presence, drastic changes in Europe’s military establishment must be made. The more in demand the European Union becomes, the more European nations, especially Germany, perceive that a radical military overhaul is in order!

Germany has troops stationed in 11 nations. Together with other European nations, it is participating in Europe’s largest air and naval deployment since World War ii. The incursion into Lebanon has already been touted as a milestone event for Europe. When French Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy spoke before a group of German ambassadors in Berlin recently, he went so far as to declare that Europe’s presence in Lebanon “is the beginning of Europe as an entity, it is a Europe that has a face and a will to play a role” (EUbusiness.com, September 4; emphasis ours throughout).

That is a bold prediction considering the dated condition of many European militaries, particularly Germany’s.

Though, in recent years, a number of continental European nations, including Germany, have taken steps to update and improve their military capabilities, they still lag far behind their counterparts in Britain, America and even Japan. Europe’s leaders see that they lack the military capacity to satisfy their intentions of making a larger global imprint. A formidable military establishment is the backbone of a respectable foreign policy; for diplomacy to be effective, it must be underpinned by a strong military.

This reality, which was crystallized in the minds of Europe’s leaders by the recent demand for Europe to play a pivotal role in Lebanon, is already precipitating discussions in Europe about how to revive and expand Europe’s military establishment. In a recent interview, for example, Polish Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski highlighted the need for Europe to develop a stronger, more singular foreign policy. In order for such a foreign policy to exist though, and for Europe to be taken seriously, Mr. Kaczynski stated that Europe “must be much stronger—stronger also in military terms. It should have its own credible military force” (ibid., September 1).

Spiegel Online, in commenting on how Germany is poorly prepared for the tasks it has taken upon itself, referred to the capabilities of two of its speedboats that it had promised to send to Lebanon: “It’s a daring promise on Germany’s part, given the problems the boats have experienced on previous missions in the Mediterranean. At high speeds, the crafts’ ribs broke in the Mediterranean’s heavy swells. Since then, the ships are no longer permitted to travel with full fuel tanks and have been forced to reduce their weapons payloads while in the region. Higher water temperatures have wreaked havoc on cooling systems for the vessels’ electronic systems and diesel engines, forcing the speedboats to travel at reduced speeds” (September 6).

And the problems aren’t confined to the Navy. “The equipment difficulties the Lebanon mission highlights are symptomatic of the Bundeswehr’s overall condition and of the fact that Germany’s armed forces have not been properly equipped for their changing duties for some time now. This chronically underfunded, poorly outfitted and physically exhausted force is now embarking on a new foreign mission, with 10 others already underway” (ibid.).

With demand for the Bundeswehr growing faster than its capabilities, calls are increasing for a transformation of the force. German Chancellor Angela Merkel recently told the German press it was time to review the structure of the Bundeswehr “in order to make it fit for international peacekeeping,” and also talked about increasing the military budget.

These are simply the tremors of what will soon become a rapid rise in Germany’s, as well as the EU’s, military capabilities. The coming months will likely witness significant policy changes and material upgrades within Europe’s militaries. This week, the EUobserver.com reported on the progress being made by European politicians to urge the EU Commission to push ahead with reforming laws regarding EU defense contracts, thereby streamlining European defense spending—a topic the Trumpet has been following.

It is ironic that the transformation of Europe’s militaries is taking place under the guise of the EU needing to provide greater assistance in global hotspots. As global crises continue to erupt—like the war in Lebanon, or Iran’s nuclear program—and America’s ability to manage them continues to slide, nations (including America) will increasingly invite Germany and Europe to assume greater global responsibility.

Regarding the need for the EU to become more dominant globally, Ric Coolsaet, from Ghent University in Belgium, stated, “I think the lessons that some European countries have learned (from Lebanon) is that, in a situation where there is no American leadership, it’s up to Europe to intervene” (EUbusiness.com, September 5). And the more Europe intervenes, the more these activities will justify the need for a stronger military.

This reality is becoming clear in the minds of many European leaders. World leaders are virtually begging Europe to rise up and assume a central role in managing international crises. The indirect result of this trend will be that Europe’s military will become larger, more streamlined, more advanced and, in the end, supremely dominant.

As the Middle East dominates the headlines of the global newsmedia, we should consider the impact these crises are having on Europe. This angle of the story is being underreported and underanalyzed. The more crises in the Middle East and elsewhere, the more Europe will be called upon to be a stabilizing and mediating force. The more it fulfills those requests, the more muscular its military must become.

We can expect that a stronger, more unified and militarily dominant Europe will emerge from the crises unfolding in the Middle East and around the world.

The question we must ask is, should we be concerned about a world where Europe is a dominant military power? The answer to that question lies in the long and violent history of the Continent.