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Experts urge NATO coproduction and U.S. FMS reform to shore up munition and industrial shortfalls
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Summary
Witnesses told the subcommittee that Europe lacks sufficient defense industrial capacity and proposed joint ventures and coproduction with U.S. firms; witnesses also raised the need to reform Foreign Military Sales (FMS) and speed deliveries and sustainment.
Lawmakers and defense experts at a House Subcommittee on Europe hearing highlighted acute European shortfalls in munitions and advanced systems production and proposed joint U.S.-European coproduction to scale output.
Why it matters: The war in Ukraine has strained European stockpiles and exposed industrial fragility. Witnesses said shortfalls in production capacity and fragmented procurement risk undermining allied sustainment and long-term deterrence.
Rear Admiral Mark Montgomery described the current flow of equipment to Ukraine as dominated by U.S. production: “As we look, as we sourced, Ukraine over the last 3 years, 95 percent of the U.S. what US provided was US equipment. But more than 50% of what, of the Western equipment provided by the Europeans was US equipment. They do not have a effective defense industrial base.”
Witnesses recommended a mix of measures to expand capacity: joint ventures between U.S. and European firms, targeted industrial investment, and coproduction agreements that build factories and supply lines in Europe while maintaining U.S. production for scale. Montgomery cited Rheinmetall's partnerships as a model for scalable cooperation.
Members also raised U.S. procedural issues. Several speakers urged Foreign Military Sales (FMS) reform to reduce delivery backlogs and to ensure that partner purchases (including sustainment and consumables) proceed faster. Members noted that unpaid or delayed deliveries to long-term partners create credibility and readiness problems; witnesses urged streamlining approvals and prioritizing sustainment for transferred platforms.
No formal legislative action was taken during the hearing; recommendations focused on executive-branch and allied industrial-policy options.
