Benefits and Bear Traps: The EU Defence Directive
Aug 2008, Vol. 153, No. 4
By Tim Williams
The ‘transatlantic technology gap’ has been common parlance in the defence
world for a number of years. Talk of ‘the gap’ reflects the fact that in a number of key areas US military equipment is more advanced than European kit. This does not mean that the Americans are somehow more scientifically or technologically adept than Europeans; rather it is largely a question of investment. And when it comes to defence research and development (R&D), combined European expenditure is only about one-sixth of that of the US. As the old adage goes ‘you get what you pay for’.
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By Tim Williams
The ‘transatlantic technology gap’ has been common parlance in the defence
world for a number of years. Talk of ‘the gap’ reflects the fact that in a number of key areas US military equipment is more advanced than European kit. This does not mean that the Americans are somehow more scientifically or technologically adept than Europeans; rather it is largely a question of investment. And when it comes to defence research and development (R&D), combined European expenditure is only about one-sixth of that of the US. As the old adage goes ‘you get what you pay for’.
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