We once again live in a world of armed conflicts, and we would be foolish to assume that these storms will never reach us. It makes sense, then, to seek real wartime experience—if not for entire units, then at least for the instructors who will train the rest. And where direct experience is out of reach, we can still acquire the procedures and doctrines distilled from the hard lessons of others.
Some might immediately think of the Ukrainian battlefield. But the Czechs will never fight a war on the open steppe against a massive, technologically advanced army—unless as part of some far-flung expedition under foreign command.
Our priority should be a different kind of conflict entirely: urban warfare. Dense, chaotic streets where bands and militias appear and vanish, and where men shift from soldier to civilian and back again whenever it suits them. That kind of conflict can spill over to us far more easily—from the increasingly unstable, Islamized states just beyond our borders.
And in this field, no country has deeper, more hard-earned knowledge than Israel. There is simply no better teacher.
Europe, as usual, is divided. Hungary maintains close and productive relations with Israel; though little of it is reported publicly, it is almost certain that its armed forces are absorbing Israeli know-how. Serbia has already announced a major military contract with Israel. Even Arab states have begun to draw on these lessons—some have reportedly sent contingents into Gaza to take part in operations against Hamas and to gain firsthand experience in that uniquely demanding environment.
Meanwhile, the European Union is busy drafting yet another sanctions package. Unlike Russia, Brussels is still stuck somewhere between its first and second.