https://www.cnbc.com/2018/07/11/obama-a ... fense.htmlTo be fair major allies in NATO should step it up, especially if the EU wants to become more of a federation. Part of the reason why how Russia go to where it was today was how European powers got to complacent with the post cold war climate of the early 2000s. "This kurzgesagt told wars between nations will never happen again. Therefore we can abolish our military and use the funds for healthcare and education/nasa".
Sure Russia's military isn't the Soviet one, however nations like German military is mere husk. Macron there seems to be some interest in improving and modernizing the French military especially an interest in defense treaties. Hopefully he is able to make France back into an effective conventional force, however other nation's willingness to fight or commit to defense seems rather lacking. Many nations have downsized their military, and have abolished whole units. For example many nations have abandoned heavy mechanized vehicles in favor of a small fleet of light wheeled vehicles as seen in the Netherlands.
Another issue is that whole "what's in it for me" or "I want people to die for my country, but I don't want MY people to die for another country" mentality that has been made popular thanks to the isolationists and
foreign countries. If the US pulled out of NATO and Russia invaded the Baltics tommorow, I have a feeling none of the countries in the EU would want to commit to a "another pointless war" and go for some Neville Chamberlain 2.0 solution that will only chip away at the west.