The combined active military forces of European NATO and EU countries total approximately 1.5 million soldiers.

Omissions

• The most recent available data (SIPRI 2024, cited by Bruegel) gives a figure of 1.47 million, not exactly 1.5 million, though the claim's qualifier 'around' makes this a reasonable approximation.
• Only one high-quality secondary source (Bruegel, a reputable European think tank citing SIPRI) could be located to verify the claim. Two genuinely independent secondary sources or a primary source could not be found within the search limits, which reduces confidence.
• The geographic scope is somewhat imprecise: the Bruegel figure covers 'Europe, including the UK', which should encompass all European NATO and EU countries, but this could not be confirmed in detail.
• The MEP did not cite any source for this figure, making independent verification more difficult.

Sources

• SecondaryBruegelEurope, including the UK, currently has 1.47 million active-duty military personnel (SIPRI, 2024).
• SecondaryNew Union PostOf the approximately 3.65 million NATO active personnel, 1,315,600 are from the United States and 1,285,970 from the 23 EU member states that are in NATO.