Russia’s use of ground-launched ballistic and cruise missiles against Ukraine has prompted a renaissance among some European countries to reacquire analogous capabilities. But political, technical and budgetary challenges need to be overcome for this aspiration to be viable.
Russia’s 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine has reinvigorated European NATO members’ interest in modernising and strengthening their armed forces after nearly three decades of underinvestment. Among the many capabilities being sought, some countries have stated their interest in acquiring long-range, ground-launched conventional missiles through a joint effort known as the European Long-Range Strike Approach (ELSA). This marks the renaissance of a capability that has mostly been absent from the arsenals of European countries since the 1990s. While ELSA has the potential to provide deterrence benefits for European states and improve NATO’s defence and deterrence posture, there are, however, several political, technical and budgetary challenges associated with a co-development that will need to be addressed if the project is to bear fruit.
Europe re-evaluates ground-launched missilesRussia’s large-scale use of ballistic and cruise missiles in its war against Ukraine has led some European countries to re-evaluate the benefits of possessing conventional long-range strike capabilities. One option is to buy from outside of the region, but another is to either manufacture indigenously or in partnership. The latter approach informs the ELSA project. France, Germany, Italy and Poland launched ELSA in July 2024 with the intention to develop a sovereign capability to improve ‘the defence of Europe and to strengthen the European defence industrial and technological base’ and to contribute to ‘strengthening the European pillar of the Alliance, for better sharing of the burden between Allies’.
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