Europe and Canada Are Finally Saying No to the F-35 Stealth Fighter
nationalsecurityjournal.org
Key Points and Summary – European nations and Canada are “pushing away” from the F-35, motivated by a desire for “strategic autonomy” and political friction with the Trump administration. -Spain officially canceled its F-35 purchase in August 2025, opting for European-built alternatives after PM Pedro Sanchez clashed with Trump over NATO spending. -Switzerland, meanwhile, is […]

cross-posted from: https://scribe.disroot.org/post/5525782

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  • European nations and Canada are “pushing away” from the F-35, motivated by a desire for “strategic autonomy” and political friction with the Trump administration

  • Spain officially canceled its F-35 purchase in August 2025, opting for European-built alternatives. Switzerland is now also reviewing its 36-jet deal after being hit with a “shocking” $1.3 billion price hike and new 39% U.S. tariffs, and recent reports suggest that Portugal has not opted to purchase the U.S. jets

  • Instead of the F-35, they are increasingly looking to European alternatives, such as the Eurofighter Typhoon and the Future Combat Air System (FCAS).

  • Canada’s 88-jet deal is also in “limbo,” as PM Mark Carney, angered by Trump’s “51st state” comments and trade disputes, ordered a review of the 72 un-committed jets

  • Technological and industrial sovereignty are significant reasons why some countries are opting not to purchase the F-35. Some European nations prioritize developing their own defense industries and technological bases. Buying American-made F-35s would make them dependent on US supply chains and could suppress the development of their own next-generation aircraft programs. …

  • carpelbridgesyndrome@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
    1·
    2 hours ago

    To be blunt I don’t think either Europe or Canada have a replacement for it. European militaries are, much like the US dependent on air power. Western artillary systems in Ukraine exist but show significant supply and maintenance issues. Russia and the Soviet Union understood the heavy use of air power and spent a lot of time working to deny it. Europe now has a long border with a country heavily invested in effective long range air defense systems. If Europe wants to maintain effective air superiority over border regions it needs to invest in stealth fighters it currently doesn’t have.

    Canada has to handle the risk that Trump fully loses it and tries to invade. The US invested heavily in stealth fighters with over the horizon capabilities as well as heavily steathed bombers. These aren’t hypothetical wunderwaffen. They exist and have at this point had most of the kinks worked out. Relying on the US Air Force making the same dumb mistake it made in Serbia, flying planes on the same flight path at the same time every day, is probably not an adequate strategy.