A lot has changed over the past few years.
Change can be good; change can be bad.
Let’s take an up to date look at the military capabilities of the European Union and Russia
in the year 2020.
The last time we looked at these two militaries it ended up being a draw, with no clear victor,
but has time changed that outcome?
Is Russia more formidable now than a few years ago?
I guess you’re just going to have to keep watching to find out how a war between the
European Union and Russia would end.
First let’s look at the amount of money the two countries are pumping into their militaries.
As we know, the European Union is in tumultuous times.
Brexit has been passed, so technically Britain’s military assets went with it.
It is probably safe to say that if the European Union went to war with Russia, Britain would
likely join the side of the EU.
But what if they decide not to?
What if the United Kingdom wants to stay out of any armed conflict?
For argument's sake, we will be keeping Britain and its assets out of this comparison.
The European Union spends around 270 billion dollars on their military.
This is nowhere near as much as the United States, but it is a significant amount.
Russia on the other hand, has a military budget of around 65 billion dollars.The European
Union seems to be investing more money in their military- however, just because more
money is being pumped into a military, does not make it better.
The European Union is facing the challenges that come with many different countries and
cultures trying to work together under a set of laws.
This can lead to inefficiency and waste.
However, a unified Russia under the control of a dictator, can make decisions very quickly.
It can be argued that this makes things, like building a military, more efficient.
Money aside, let’s take a look at the actual capabilities of each military.
We will start with ground forces since the European Union and Russia share a border.
If a land invasion occurred, who would have the upper hand?
The answer might surprise you.
Currently, the European Union has over 3.8 million personnel.
Only 1.5 million are active, leaving around 2.3 million soldiers in reserves.
However, if war broke out between the EU and Russia, everyone would be expected to fight.
Russia has around 1 million active military personnel and 2 million in reserve.
So, Russia has a slightly smaller military when it comes to man power.
This isn’t surprising since there are around 446 million people living in the European
Union, and only about 146 million people living in Russia.
Just in sheer numbers, the European Union has a slight advantage.
But what if the full might of the Russian ground forces were to sweep across the border
into Europe?
What would Europe need to prepare itself for?
It has been well established that Russia has the largest tank force in the world.
The Russian military consists of around 12,950 tanks.
This is almost double the number that the European Union has.
One of the most powerful Russian tanks is the T-14 Armata.
This 55 ton beast has an 125 millimeter smoothbore cannon mounted on it, and carries up to 45
rounds.
Its powerful engines allow the T-14 to reach a top speed of 56 miles per hour.
Most of the Russian tank force is made up of older models, but the T-14 is a formidable
tank.
The large number of armored vehicles that the Russian military has at its disposal,
even if they are older, could allow the country to dominate the land battles if war broke
out with Europe.
The European Union is not totally defenseless when it comes to tank warfare.
Both Germany and France have state of the art tank arsenals.
Germany has the Leopard 2A5 tank, which has a 120 millimeter smoothbore cannon with 42
rounds, and it can travel up to 42 miles per hour.
France has the Leclerc tank, which also has an 120 millimeter cannon and can hold up to
40 rounds.
The Leclerc can travel 44 miles per hour on even terrain.
Both of these tanks are powerful, yet the T-14 has a larger cannon and can move faster.
In a one on one fight between the tanks, the T-14 seems to have the upper hand.
Also, the Russian tank army in general has more vehicles.
If the only fighting to happen in war between the European Union and Russia was tank warfare,
Europe would be in trouble.
In today’s day and age an entire battle can be won or lost in the skies..
The best way to maintain air superiority is to have the best tech and pilots possible.
Let’s see how the European Union’s air force stacks up against Russia’s.
Again in terms of just numbers, Russia has the advantage.
Russia’s air force contains around 4,160 aircraft.
This includes everything from fighter jets to helicopters.
However, like with their tanks, many of the aircrafts consist of the Cold War Soviet Union
machinery that was built up in the 1950’s and 60’s.
The European Union’s air force is made up of around 2,450 aircraft.
Russia has almost double the number of aircraft as the European Union yet again.
But Europe has access to two of the most deadly fighter planes on the planet.
The French made Dassault Rafale is able to hold its own in the skies in any dogfight
or escort mission.
However, it is the Eurofighter Typhoon that is the crown jewel of the EU’s air force.
The Eurofighter Typhoon is a collaboration between Britain, Germany, Italy, and Spain.
It is often ranked in the top ten of the most deadly fighter jets, and is one of the European
Union’s greatest assets in air to air combat.
However, Russia also has their own highly effective fighter jets.
Both the Sukhoi Su-3 and the new Mikoyan MiG-35 would give the Eurofighter Typhoon a run for
its money.
The Russian air force also has the Tupolev Tu-160 Blackjack at their disposal, which
as far as bombers go, can deliver massive amounts of damage across large distances.
It is because of the larger number of aircraft, as well as competitive fighter jets and bombers,
that Russia also has a slight advantage in air combat over the European Union.
At this point you may be surprised by Russia’s upper hand in land and air combat.
What about navies though?
After all, entire wars have been fought and won on the high seas.
Each navy has around 600 ships at their disposal.
However, some vessels are more important and powerful than others.
Let’s be clear, a naval battle between the European Union and Russia seems unlikely,
since Russia and Europe share a border of around 1,300 miles.
It is much more likely that a war between the two militaries would take place on land
and in the air.
But for argument’s sake, let’s take a look at how their Navy’s stack up.
One of the most powerful naval vessels in any war is the aircraft carrier.
They are like floating fortresses that contain miniature armies.
Russia has one operational aircraft carrier at this point in time.
The European Union has four between three of the countries in the pact.
France and Spain both have one aircraft carrier while Italy has two.
The U.K. also has two, but since they decided to leave the European Union, we cannot count
those on the EU’s side.
Even still, the European Union holds the higher number of aircraft carriers.
Both the European Union and Russia have around 60 subs.
Although, Russia has 33 nuclear submarines, while France, which is the only country in
the European Union with nuclear submarines, only has 5.
This is a clear advantage for Russia.
Again, a naval confrontation between the European Union and Russia seems unlikely, but if something
were to happen Russia would have the advantage with over 6 times more nuclear submarines
than the European Union.
This brings us to the scariest weapons in modern warfare, the nuke.
In nuclear warfare having more missiles does not necessarily mean you are more powerful.
The European Union has around 290 nuclear warheads.
That is enough to wipe out every major Russian city, and much of the life in Asia and Europe.
Russia has 1,326 deployed nuclear missiles and another 6,375 that are in reserve or being
decommissioned.
That is enough to pretty much wipe all human life off of the face of the planet.
Either way, nuclear warfare will never end in a victory.
The radiation, chemicals, and debris that would be swept across the planet would ensure
that everyone loses in a nuclear war.
We also know that in today’s warfare, control of intelligence is important.
Russia has an advantage on two fronts in this aspect.
Ever since the launch of Sputnik I on October 4, 1957, Russia has had an ongoing space program.
In fact, up until very recently, the United States was piggybacking off of the Russian
space program to get astronauts to the International Space Station.
Compared to the European Union there is no contest, Russia has dominance in space.
This would be important in all out war because of satellite control for reconnaissance and
communication.
It is only a matter of time before space becomes militarized.
Russia is in a much better position to take advantage of the militarization of space.
All you have to do is look at the latest space missions for each agency.
The most recent manned mission to space for Russia was the Soyuz MS-16 mission which launched
on April, 9 2020.
The last European manned mission to space was… never.
The European Union has never launched their own rocket with a crew on it to space.
Needless to say, Russia has a much more advanced space program.
The other modern warfare component that Russia leads in is cyber warfare.
It is no secret that Russia has conducted hacking operations into several countries'
classified databases.
Just recently they stole secret intelligence from the Ukranian government, before applying
pressure to their border.
Russian hackers also have stolen millions of dollars from organizations around the world.
Hacking groups may be independent from the Russian government, but oftentimes they are
working in cahoots.
Take the 2016 United States presidential elections for instance.
After several high profile investigations, it was concluded that Russian hackers were
actively trying to influence the presidential election, and may have successfully done so.
Russia has a long history of cyber warfare, while the European Union seems less engaged
in this aspect of war.
So, we can conclude that in terms of warfare in cyberspace and outer space that Russia
has the upper hand.
This would give them better intelligence and may allow Russia to cripple the European Union
without even firing a shot.
If Russia takes control of the EU’s satellites, and shuts down their internet capability,
Europe could literally be in the dark.
Does this mean that Russia would win in a war between itself and the European Union?
Probably not.
There is one more war ending weapon that the European Union has on its side, an alliance
with the United States of America.
In our scenario we were comparing the militaries of the European Union and Russia by themselves.
However, if war ever broke out between the two powers, allies would come to their aid.
The European Union is part of The North Atlantic Treaty Organization, or NATO for short.
This alliance includes 30 countries, one of which is the United States.
The United States and China are the only superpowers in the world, and have the largest and most
advanced military at this moment in time.
If the European Union went to war with Russia, the United States would have to join them
because of the NATO alliance.
Russia would not be able to win a war against the combined militaries of the European Union
and the United States.
It would be game over.
Russia does have alliances with other countries, and could call on them to help support their
war effort.
However, the only alliance, which ends up being tenuous at best, is the Collective Security
Treaty Organization.
This is an intergovernmental alliance between Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan,
and Tajikistan.
Even with the support of their allies, Russia would still be no match for the combined strength
of the European Union and the United States.
When it comes down to it, if the European Union and Russia went head to head, it would
be close.
Russia has a slight advantage in terms of land and air forces.
They also have a strong position for the future of warfare in space and online.
However, since the European Union is a part of NATO, if war broke out the United States
would come to their aid.
In this scenario there is no doubt that the European Union and its allies would decimate
the Russian military.
In a war without allies though, Russia still reigns supreme in Europe as the top military
power, and Europe could do little to defeat Russia in war.
Now check out Russia VS United States (USA) - Who Would Win - Military Comparison 2019.
Or watch another military comparison by clicking USA vs IRAN: Who Would Win?
- Military / Army Comparison 2019