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The main problem is that most European nations essentially disbanded their military after the financial crisis. The European weakness has made it extremely difficult to deliver weapons so far. Thankfully the European war machine is now really picking up and is ready to take over in case of GOP shenanigans (unfortunately we are electing our own idiots and Moscow stooges so no guarantees ).
Russia can be smart... in some ways, sometimes (while also simultaneously dumb in others, as aren't we all?:-P). e.g. wasn't it 2025 that Germany was scheduled to eliminate its dependence upon Russian oil (or was it rather all?) for energy. Knowing this does seem likely to have influenced the timeline of events somewhat, seeing how in that regard at least (and some others) it was the perfect time to strike - i.e. if they had waited longer it would have become far more difficult?
And let's be blunt: if they had managed to take over what they wanted in that "three-day" timetable as initially planned, wouldn't Europe have simply let them have it? As we consider that, let us not kid ourselves here b/c this invasion has gone on for a decade at this point - Georgia, Crimea, the area west of Crimea, etc. - each time citing "no, I swear, this was all that I wanted, I won't do this ever again, I promise". So if EU nations are somehow shocked, Shocked I tell you, SHOCKED, that those leopards would not one day turn and eat THEIR faces off, then I don't know what to tell them...
However, I was pleased to note how e.g. Germany quickly turned its economy upside down and started mass-producing weapons. They tend to be a very smart and technically-minded people, so I for one have no problems believing that it at least could have been a strategic move on their part to "not have weapons", when they were not immediately needed, yet also be ready to start producing them at a moment's notice when the need for such became apparent - as you pointed out.
Likewise but with very different factors involved, those nations physically closest to Russia may have wanted weapons yet been afraid of enraging the bear by having them? So what I am trying, probably ineptly, to say is that it may not "purely" be due to willful ignorance on behalf of every EU nation, to lay down those older-style weapons that cost a lot yet haven't been necessary for literally decades. A better cost-to-benefit ratio may have been to invest in something like energy independence, so long as the military factor was covered at some very minimal level.
Plus technology changes so fast... as we are seeing live in Ukraine, "tanks" were not the big thing, especially as Russia heavily misused them at first, compared to drones, right? So EU nations were "not prepared", in the specific sense, but by investing into robotics and batteries and such, the converse does not seem quite true either i.e. we cannot say that those same nations were not entirely "unprepared" either?
That is why it is so amazing that Ukraine is holding off Russia, essentially acting as the shield for the entire fucking world, making Russia expend all of its military might & resources upon it, which could otherwise be put to use elsewhere, into saving up and preparing for the next target, which they ofc according to Russa "we have no plans for, b/c Ukraine is all that we want, we promise"!
Ukraine really does deserve aid then - they've earned that. But... there are >100 Republicans who seem to believe rather that Russia has "earned" the right to take whatever they want. And that should worry us all, around the world.