Strategic Co-Production as Europe’s Response to Industrial Capacity Pressure

The European defence industry is undergoing a substantive reconfiguration, driven by mounting pressure on production capacity and by the structural gaps revealed during the war in Ukraine. This report offers a clear and up-to-date assessment of how Europe is responding, adopting more advanced forms of strategic co-production to reinforce industrial autonomy and the security of supply.

Covering ammunition and propellants, naval and land systems, sensors, avionics and the broader network of critical inputs, the document reconstructs with precision the institutional and industrial dynamics now reshaping Europe’s military supply chains.

This analysis answers: What structural gaps in European production capacity, revealed during the war in Ukraine, is strategic co-production intended to close? How does co-production reinforce industrial autonomy and security of supply across ammunition, propellants, naval and land systems, sensors and avionics? Which institutional and industrial actors and dynamics are reshaping Europe's military supply chains? What are the constraints and outlook for scaling advanced strategic co-production models?