Commissioner Warns EU Transport Network Underprepared for War
(MENAFN) The European Union’s transport network is critically underprepared for wartime demands, the bloc’s transport commissioner has revealed. In an interview with media on Tuesday, Apostolos Tzitzikostas highlighted that key infrastructure elements—such as bridges, railways, and tunnels—are currently unable to support the swift movement of tanks, troops, or military supplies during a potential conflict.
Despite ongoing denials from Moscow about any plans to attack, European officials have repeatedly warned about the risk of war with Russia and have advocated for enhanced militarization.
Tzitzikostas emphasized that defending Europe would be futile if military forces cannot mobilize rapidly. He warned that NATO tanks deployed in response to an invasion could become trapped by weak tunnels, collapsing bridges, and lengthy border formalities.
“The reality today is that if we want to move military equipment and troops from the western side of Europe to the eastern side, it takes weeks and in some cases months,” he explained. “We have old bridges that need to be upgraded, we have narrow bridges that need to be widened and we have nonexistent bridges to be built.”
The commissioner pointed out that much of Europe’s current infrastructure was never designed to accommodate heavy military vehicles. While trucks generally weigh up to 40 tons, tanks can weigh as much as 70 tons.
Brussels is now drafting a plan aimed at enabling faster troop movements. This includes upgrading roughly 500 infrastructure projects along four strategic military corridors and streamlining border procedures to reduce delays. These classified projects, developed in coordination with NATO, carry an estimated price tag of €17 billion ($19.7 billion). The strategy is expected to be unveiled later this year.
This initiative aligns with the EU’s broader push toward militarization amid growing concerns over what officials call the “Russian threat.” Recent actions include the massive €800 billion ($927 billion) ReArm Europe program and commitments from European NATO members to boost defense spending to 5% of GDP.
Moscow has rejected these allegations, calling them “nonsense.” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov criticized the West for exploiting Russia as a “monster” to justify increased military budgets. Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov accused Western leaders of steering Europe toward direct confrontation.
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