The IISS analysis delivers a harsh warning for European defence. A flagship Franco-German-Spanish plan to build a next-generation fighter now looks broken. The project was meant to prove Europe could act like a serious military power. Instead, it has exposed the same old problem: national industry, political pride and strategic mistrust getting in the way of hard capability.

Europe’s air forces are chasing drones while the real shortage sits under their wings. The RUSI commentary argues that NATO’s European members do not first need a new fantasy fleet of uncrewed aircraft. They need missiles and bombs – quickly, in depth and in the right types.

France is no longer watching the far right from a safe distance. The Christian Science Monitor interview with Victor Mallet, author of Far-Right France: Le Pen, Bardella and the Future of Europe, presents a country where Marine Le Pen’s National Rally has moved from political outcast to power-in-waiting.

Latvia has a new government, but nobody should mistake it for a clean reset. The KAS country report shows a country forced into a hurried political handover after drone incidents, a defence ministry row and the collapse of Evika Siliņa’s cabinet.

France wants to become Europe’s undisputed missile powerhouse. From long-range cruise missiles and ballistic systems to hypersonic weapons and next-generation strike capabilities, Paris is investing heavily in a vast arsenal designed to strengthen both national deterrence and European military autonomy.

The commentary delivers a brutal diagnosis of how Europe now talks about itself – and why it is doing real damage. Europe’s leaders increasingly frame the EU as helpless, late and outmatched, not because it is always true, but because humiliation has become a communications strategy. The piece argues that this habit, meant to shock publics into accepting reforms or sacrifices, is backfiring badly.

France still sees itself as a leader, but this study questions how far that ambition can travel in today’s Europe. Paris has military assets, diplomatic reach and strategic instinct. What it lacks is a stable platform to turn intent into sustained leadership. Capability exists. Consistency does not.