arguably those two are linked - you can rationalise that French / German govt have been reluctant to spend on military force over which they have less influence

arguably those two are linked - you can rationalise that French / German govt have been reluctant to spend on military force over which they have less influence than they would prefer. Hence the arguments for an EU army, despite the existence of NATO. We will see what happens with the German U-turn on military spending whether this results in them falling into line alongside the Brits in NATO, or closer the French in a EU military force. I suspect it will now be the former, given the loss of leverage the Germans now have