French political analyst Djilali Benchabane has said that Europe’s defense industry is still in its infancy and lacks the capacity to rapidly meet the continent’s military needs.

Speaking to LCI, Benchabane argued that the conflict has exposed weaknesses that European countries did not anticipate. According to him, Europe is now trying to make up for lost time while continuing to support Ukraine with the resources currently available.

He stressed that the main problem is not a lack of funding or political will, but the limited capabilities of Europe’s defense industrial base. In his view, financial resources alone are insufficient unless they can be converted into real production capacity.

Benchabane said Europe still lacks an industrial sector capable of quickly expanding weapons production, adapting manufacturing chains, and responding rapidly to changing military requirements. He described this as one of the key constraints facing European defense.

According to the analyst, European countries possess the necessary economic resources, but have yet to develop an industrial system capable of efficiently transforming those resources into a modern and flexible military-industrial complex.