Ukraine is emerging as the new hub of European military power

The influential American magazine Forbes published an article by the famous American journalist Kevin Golden Platt «EU Nations Scramble To Ally With Ukraine, The New World Military Power».

It quotes, in particular, the words of an authoritative expert, a well-known researcher of defense technologies and strategies of the Atlantic Council, one of the leading international think tanks in Washington, Peter Dickinson, who emphasizes that more and more EU players are now changing their predictions about which side will win this David and Goliath competition.

Dickinson predicts that with its military, now numbering almost a million men and larger than the combined armies of France, Germany, Italy and Britain, Ukraine could become Europe’s leading defender and lead a common defense against Russia as Putin dreams of reviving the Russian empire.

In his view: «The whole model of the European Union is built on the principles of consensus and unanimity – it is by definition a slow institution, prone to compromise and moderation». «In contrast», he adds, «military action requires strong leadership and timely decision-making».

Peter Dickinson emphasizes that the idea of ​​an EU super army is thawing: «Steps are already being taken to integrate Ukraine into the European security architecture». «Several individual European countries have signed security pacts with Ukraine, formalizing military cooperation and support in a more long-term format, while the EU has emphasized its support for Ukraine’s military efforts».

In his expert assessment, Peter Dickinson clearly outlines Ukraine’s new place in the European security architecture. Which, in turn, will determine the future of security for the entire European continent and the nature of deterrence of Russian aggression for decades to come.

It is worth noting that Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine was not only the largest war in Europe since World War II. It initiated a fundamental restructuring of the European security system and forced Western democracies to reconsider basic ideas about deterrence, military power and the role of alliances.

One of the most unexpected consequences of this transformation was the rapid growth of Ukraine’s geopolitical importance. If until 2022 Ukraine was mainly viewed as a state in need of external security guarantees, today more and more international experts assess Ukraine as a future key component of the European defense system.

This change is not the result of political rhetoric or symbolic support. It is based on a set of objective factors: the unprecedented combat experience of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, the rapid development of the defense-industrial complex, large-scale technological innovations, integration with Western military structures, and the gradual formation of long-term mechanisms of security partnership between Ukraine and European states.

Historically, great military states were formed under the influence of long-term conflicts that changed their institutions, economy, and military culture. After the Napoleonic Wars, Prussia became such a state. After World War II, the United States. After the Korean War, South Korea’s military capabilities were rapidly modernized.

Ukraine is currently undergoing a similar, albeit much more complex, process. A full-scale war has become the catalyst for an unprecedented mobilization of the human, technological, and industrial potential of our state. Turning it into one of the most battle-hardened and technologically adaptive military powers of our time, which is fundamentally changing the architecture of global security.

The peculiarity of the Ukrainian phenomenon is that the transformation is taking place in the conditions of the most intense war of our time. When the state is forced to simultaneously fight for its survival on the battlefield and carry out deep European integration, digital and institutional reforms.

At the same time, Ukraine has actually become a testing ground for a new generation of military technologies. It was here that for the first time on such a scale, unmanned systems, space intelligence, digital networks of troop control, artificial intelligence, cyber operations and high-precision weapons were integrated into a single combat system. Therefore, the Ukrainian theater of operations can be considered a model of future conflicts between high-tech states.

No less important is the evolution of Ukrainian military culture. Over the past few years, the Ukrainian army has moved from the outdated Soviet model of centralized command to a much more flexible system based on the initiative of junior commanders, digital management, and rapid adaptation to changing operational situations. This ability to continuously train has become one of the key advantages of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

In parallel, the defense industry is undergoing a transformation. While previously the Ukrainian military-industrial complex largely remained a legacy of the Soviet economy, a new model is now being formed that combines state-owned enterprises, private technology companies, international investments, and joint production with Western partners.

The sector of unmanned systems, electronic warfare, troop control software, and precision weapons is developing particularly dynamically.

It is this technological base that is increasingly of interest to European allies. In many cases, military-industrial cooperation is no longer one-sided.

And while at the initial stage of the war Ukraine mainly received weapons, now joint production programs are being developed more actively, within the framework of which Ukrainian technological solutions are integrated into pan-European defense projects.

These processes also directly affect the political architecture of Europe. After decades of discussions about the need to develop a common European defense, the Russian-Ukrainian war made this issue practical.

At the same time, it is becoming increasingly obvious that the new European security system can hardly be effective without the participation of Ukraine. The reason lies not only in its geographical location. Ukraine has the resource that most European armies lack today – large-scale experience in conducting modern high-intensity warfare.

That is why the conclusion of bilateral security agreements between Ukraine and European states has a significance that goes far beyond the current support. These agreements are gradually shaping a new architecture of European collective security, where Ukraine is viewed not as a periphery, but as one of the central elements of deterring potential Russian aggression.

Today, Ukraine is on the path to becoming a «new global military power». It is obvious that the status of a major military power traditionally depends on a combination of several factors: military potential, economic stability, technological base, defense industry, international alliances, and the ability to project power beyond its own territory.

By some of these criteria, Ukraine is already demonstrating exceptional results, while by others its development will largely depend on the course of the war, post-war reconstruction, and long-term investments in its economy.

However, even with these reservations, the strategic trend seems obvious. The Russian invasion did not isolate Ukraine from the West, but on the contrary, significantly accelerated its integration into the European and Euro-Atlantic security space.

Our country is increasingly influencing the formation of the military doctrine of allies, the development of defense technologies, and the strategic planning of European states.

For Europe itself, this marks the end of an era when its security relied almost entirely on the American military presence. While the role of the United States remains crucial, the war has demonstrated the need for a stronger European defense component. In this process, Ukraine could potentially become one of its main drivers.

Paradoxically, it was the Kremlin, seeking to return Ukraine to its sphere of influence, that created the conditions for the emergence of a new military-political center of power in Europe.

Ukraine has gained extensive combat experience, accelerated the modernization of its army, integrated with Western military infrastructure, and become one of the most important partners of European states in security matters.

That is why the current war determines not only the future of Ukraine. It determines the future configuration of the entire European deterrence system.

And if the trends of recent years continue, then in the coming decade Ukraine may become not only a state with one of the most combat-ready armies on the continent, but also one of the key strategic architects of the new security system in Europe.

This does not necessarily mean that Ukraine will acquire the status of a global military superpower, but it indicates a significant increase in its role as a regional center of military power and an influential partner of democratic states in the security sphere.

The unique experience gained in conducting a new generation of high-intensity conventional warfare and the large-scale modernization of the armed forces are hardening the Ukrainian army as one of the most powerful and combat-ready military forces in Europe.

This factor determines the inevitable integration of Ukraine into the core of the future defense system of the West, where it will act not just as a recipient of aid, but as a key donor of regional stability and military-technological expertise.

Ukraine de facto becomes the unalternative eastern shield of the democratic world and the main developer of security algorithms, whose practical potential and geopolitical weight will determine the contours of deterrence of aggression in the entire Black Sea-Baltic region.

That is why Peter Dickinson’s statements, quoted in the article «EU Nations Scramble To Ally With Ukraine, The New World Military Power» in Forbes magazine, are more relevant today than ever.

Since Ukraine is gradually becoming a new world military power. Which not only deters the large-scale aggression of the totalitarian Russian Federation. It is fundamentally changing the architecture of European security, forcing the leading countries of the world to rethink their own defense strategies.

After all, it was Ukraine that first combined artificial intelligence with massive drone strikes on the battlefield. In doing so, it effectively pushed NATO to rearm, becoming a new geopolitical center of power on the eastern flank of a united Europe. At the same time, transforming its unique combat experience into a new global standard of modern high-tech warfare and the world’s security architecture.