Europe's defense strategy was discussed at this weekend's Lennart Meri Conference by ministers from Latvia and Estonia, and defense experts.

Carlo Masala, professor of international politics at the Bundeswehr University Munich, highlighted problems with the 2029 timeframe. The academic said both political and military leaders assume the defense industry will be able to produce sufficient weapons by the deadline, but in reality, it will take much longer.

"Imagine — our political leaders, and even military leaders, they basically are planning and executing under this date of 2029. We are in the midst of 2026 and if you look where we are, we didn't advance that much, to exaggerate a bit," he told the audience.

At the same time, the components needed to increase defense capability are not immediately available on the open market. European countries must first create a strong industrial foundation on which to begin building new weapons.

"If 2029 is really the horizon where we have to be ready, then we are too slow. I mean, it already has been mentioned that we still have no industrial base for speeding up production of tanks, fighter planes and and and frigots," Masala said.

General Ingo Gerhartz, commander of NATO's Allied Joint Force Command Brunssum, said senior military officers in Western countries share similar concerns. He said development is moving in the right direction, but readiness to respond to possible crises is needed immediately.

"Sometimes in the media, I read statements from politicians, as well as some of the generals, that yes, in 2029, we will be ready to defend. I do not like those timelines at all, and here especially, people are not caring about 2029 or 2030; they care about today," he said. Gerhartz added that there needs to be a common understanding between the frontline states and the rest of Europe.

Eastern flank countries feel the time pressure most directly. Estonian Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur (Reform) said there is no time to wait for new capability targets to be fulfilled.

He said upcoming elections and domestic political turbulence in major Western countries, especially the U.S. and France, are creating major uncertainty in security matters.

Pevkur said Russia may not wait until 2029. Those sitting in the Kremlin may take a look at NATO and decide the best time to "poke" or "test" the alliance is "[20]26 or [20]27" and not "[20]29."

"So this is why we know we don't have time and then this is why we have to understand that, you know, if needed, we go today," he said.

Procuring new equipment is complicated by skyrocketing prices. Although European countries are currently making historically large investments, supply chain problems and growing demand are driving prices upward.

"I have been constantly discussing prices with the commander of the Estonian Defense Forces. We often see that things we bought two years ago have become 50 to 60 percent more expensive when ordering new quantities," Pevkur said.

Both Pevkur and Latvian Foreign Minister Baiba Braže said Russia's patterns of behavior have not changed.

"It is not gonna change for a while. There is no indication of change. There is no indication of giving up any of the objectives that the butcher in the Kremlin has put forward. Whether with regard to Ukraine, whether with regard to European security and let's be serious about it," Braže said.

She added that the defense industry has to increase capacity, not just ask for government contracts.

You can watch the full panel discussion below.

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