European and Ukrainian weapons warehouses are empty due to insufficient weapon stockpiles on the continent, Armin Papperger, chief executive of Rheinmetall, said in an interview with the Financial Times (FT).
Rheinmetall’s CEO said that demand for arms will remain strong – even if a ceasefire is reached between Ukraine and Russia.
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“The Europeans and the Ukrainians have nothing in their depots,” he said.
Papperger also expressed doubt that Russia would actually “stop firing” as a result of US President Donald Trump’s peace talks with the Kremlin.
He said that even if a ceasefire were reached, Europe would continue investing in its defense to counter the continue threat of Russian aggression.
“Even if the war [in Ukraine] stops—if we think that we have a very peaceful future, I think that’s wrong,” Papperger said.
He also told FT that European nations have been sidelined in discussions over Ukraine’s future due to decades of underinvestment in defense.
Europe has only itself to blame for being excluded from Trump’s negotiations to end the war in Ukraine, Papperger said.
“If you don’t invest, if you’re not strong, they treat you like children,” he said, criticizing Europe’s long-standing reluctance to increase military spending.
Papperger said that European nations have been content with spending just 1% of GDP on defense over the past 30 years, a decision that, in his view, left them powerless in major geopolitical discussions.
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Papperger compared Europe’s position to that of children being placed at a separate table while the “parents” – the US and Russia – conducted serious negotiations.
“The US is negotiating with Russia, and no European is at the table. It has become very clear that the Europeans are the kids,” he said on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference.
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