MEP on military mobility: NATO maneuvers require numerous permits, which take 46 days

Insufficiently prepared transport infrastructure for military transport and administrative barriers at the level of EU member states jeopardize the speed of defense response to external aggression.

Michael Gahler, MEP from the European People's Party, stated this in an interview with Ukrinform.

“If we are not able to move our troops, we are not able to have this credibility. I always suggested that the transport politicians and defence politicians join forces because everything that we strengthen, deepen, and broaden, of course, should be seen as dual use,” noted Gahler, adding that any bridge reinforced to withstand a 40-ton tank will also withstand a 40-ton truck for ordinary civilian use.

Accordingly, strengthening military mobility also benefits the civilian sector in peacetime, the MEP said.

As a problematic example, he mentioned the West-East route, along which it may be necessary to transport equipment from seaports or airfields to the EU's eastern border.

“When we think of the West-East route, where things would need to be transported from the ports or certain airports eastwards, if you look at how many bridges we have over the Elbe, the Oder, the Vistula, and the Bug, there are not that many. This infrastructure could be easily destroyed or paralyzed if we don’t, on the one hand, strengthen them, but also if we don’t have additional ones and other ways of getting the mobility done,” he stated.

He also pointed out the difficult administrative hurdles to better military mobility. “Currently, allegedly, for having a NATO maneuver, it takes to get all the permissions which would take 46 days. They want it to be done in three days. But while we need three days to administer the troops, the Russians have already three days to march on. So I think we need to have extra-exceptional rules where all requirements for normal civilian times can be bypassed. There’s still not yet full awareness to this end,” Gahler admitted.

As reported by Ukrinform, European Commissioner for Defense and Space Andrius Kubilius, emphasizing the need to simplify the movement of troops and equipment across the borders of EU member states, said that if military mobility in the EU is not improved, Russian forces could seize the Suwałki Gap while European military personnel are busy processing permits.