It feels like a bad joke, but it is reality. We are in the middle of the biggest conflict since World War II, yet Europe behaves like it is running a public library, not a war economy. If you want to know how much gas is left in Berlin or how many tanks Paris plans to build next month, you don’t need to be a super spy. You just need an internet connection.
This obsession with transparency is becoming a suicide note. Look at the energy sector. Every day, updated charts show exactly how full the gas caverns are. It is treated like a weather report. But for the Kremlin, this isn’t just data; it is a weapon. When they see the European gas storage levels drop, they know exactly when to squeeze the supply or hype up the panic to skyrocket prices. We are literally showing our opponent our hand in a high-stakes poker game, and then we wonder why we keep losing chips.
It gets even worse when we talk about defense. Why on earth are we announcing our exact production numbers? We see headlines screaming about the shortage of shells or specific targets for the production of ammunition by 2025. This is madness. In a real war, you keep the enemy guessing. You want them to think you have nothing, only to surprise them with everything. Instead, European bureaucrats publish PDF reports detailing exactly what they have and, more importantly, what they lack.
Russia doesn’t need to infiltrate factories when Brussels publishes the receipts. They see the gaps in our armor because we circle them with a red marker. They know how many years it will take to replenish stocks, and they adjust their attrition strategy accordingly. If they know we are running dry in six months, they just have to wait us out.
This isn’t about corruption or incompetence; it is about a mindset that refuses to accept the rules of war. Europe is addicted to the idea that openness solves everything. But right now, secrecy saves lives. We need to stop broadcasting our weaknesses. It is time to turn off the live stream of our inventory and start keeping the enemy in the dark.
