Europe’s Defence Industry More Than Two Years after Russia’s Full-scale Invasion

Abstract Russia’s full-scale invasion induced the return of industrial warfare and brought transatlantic defence industrial politics to the spotlight. Before 2022, the European defence industry had been able to muddle through without much structural change despite the long-known challenge posed by US comparative advantage and failed or incomplete consolidation and integration as a response to this challenge. More than two years into the war, the article asks what structural impact Russia’s invasion has had. How have Europeans responded to the sudden increase in arms demand? This contribution discusses the two most prominent theoretical frameworks on European integration before taking stock of defence industrial responses by introducing a typology of responses. The following discussion criticizes the two theoretical frameworks and presents the regulatory security state ( rss ) literature as a more insightful approach to understanding the EU’s impact on European defence production. Lastly, based on findings on the EU’s regulatory power, this article suggests a more productive role for the European Union in the defence of Europe.