EU commissioner’s proposal for 100,000-strong joint EU army faces skepticism

A proposal by European Commissioner Andrius Kubilius to create a permanent 100,000-strong EU army has drawn questions over feasibility and potential overlap with NATO, reports LRT.lt.

Kubilius, the EU’s defence and space commissioner, first floated the idea earlier this year, arguing that such a force could better protect Europe—particularly for EU member states not in NATO. Yet critics question where the troops would come from and how the structure would function alongside existing alliances.

Speaking in Sweden, Kubilius framed the proposal as a response to concerns about US reliability under former President Donald Trump, who had repeatedly questioned NATO’s future. “How will we replace the 100,000 US troops that form the backbone of Europe’s defence?” he asked at the time.

The concept of a unified EU military is not new. In 2023, former Munich Security Conference chair Wolfgang Ischinger told LRT.lt that Europe should move toward “training and equipping soldiers together” and eventually abandon 27 separate national armies. However, political resistance persists, with some arguing against duplicating NATO structures.

Rimantas Sinkevičius, chair of Lithuania’s Seimas National Security and Defence Committee, called the idea “worth discussing” but noted major hurdles. “100,000 troops would be significant, but bureaucratic challenges—like command structure, funding, and legal frameworks—would be enormous,” he told LRT.lt. He added that the EU currently lacks the operational capacity for large-scale conflicts and that its decision-making bureaucracy could stall progress.

Sinkevičius also suggested the debate raises broader questions about the EU’s future: whether it should remain a union of sovereign states or evolve into a federal entity like the United States. “Everything can be discussed, but we must face reality,” he said.

Former Lithuanian defence minister Laurynas Kasčiūnas has previously expressed similar reservations, though his specific comments were not detailed in the report.