Europe Not Keeping Up With Tech Progress, Creating New Weapons Already Outdated, NATO Says

© Sputnik . Alexey VitvitskyF16 aircraft of the Polish and Turkish Air Forces performing a demonstration flight as part of the NATO Summit in Warsaw
F16 aircraft of the Polish and Turkish Air Forces performing a demonstration flight as part of the NATO Summit in Warsaw - Sputnik Africa, 1920, 27.12.2024
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MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russian President Vladimir Putin said earlier in December that Russia is prepared for a technological showdown between its new Oreshnik missile system and Western air defense systems.
Europe is not keeping up with the development of military technologies and is spending too many years creating weapons systems, which is why they become outdated when they are finally adopted, NATO Supreme Allied Commander Transformation Adm. Pierre Vandier said.

"For example, you say, ‘I am building the next generation of tanks’ … They work for years on this … announce a contract, industry runs this for another decade, and ultimately you have a tank that you are not certain fulfills your goals as things have changed. New technology had time to arrive—you’ve spent a lot of money, just to have a platform that is obsolete by design, and all because the time spent building it was too long," Vandier told the Defense News portal on Thursday.

Russian President Vladimir Putin answers questions from Rossiya 1 TV channel correspondent Pavel Zarubin after the special program Year in Review with Vladimir Putin at Gostiny Dvor. - Sputnik Africa, 1920, 19.12.2024
Russia Ready for Technological Duel Using Oreshnik Systems Right Now, Putin Says
He added that the tech development period is about two to three years, which is ten times faster than "the huge, controlled procurement system in Europe."
At the same time, he noted that it is not possible to speed up the development of large equipment - aircraft, tanks or ships - because their creation always takes decades. However, the speed of development of new technologies in the fields of optoelectronics, artificial intelligence, communications and software should be increased, Vandier added.
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