Benjamin Tallis

Benjamin Tallis

@bctallis.bsky.social

Head of Policy & Analysis at Helsing - AI to Protect Our Democracies | Chair @DSI_Strategy |🇺🇦🇪🇺🇩🇪🇨🇿🇬🇧 | #NeoIdealism | Post=personal, Repost ≠ endorse. Views mine

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It’s true that drones are not everything. But drones are not going anywhere. If we can’t integrate them at scale with our existing capabilities, then the form of warfare we want to fight will die alongside our soldiers. A brilliant speaker Brig. Stu Nasse with a powerful message at #IISS_PDS26

‘What we do for Ukraine we do in weeks and months. What we do at home we still do in years and decades.’ 🇸🇪 Defence Minister Pål Jonson nails the need to scale the speed of procurement and transformation in European defence. #IISS_PDS26

“It worries me that we will be seen as the generation that screwed it up” - It was inspiring to hear UK CGS Gen. Sir Roly Walker (Head of the British Army) talk so candidly this week about his absolute determination to accelerate defence transformation to ensure deterrence.

Uncrewed air power is today tech, not tomorrow tech - & we have to get after it in practice, not theory if we’re not going to get left behind. It was an honour to be in the RAF Club in London for productive & forthright discussions on air power, with military leaders, experts & Helsing colleagues

Honoured to present Helsing’s Mastering Military Change project at NATO’s Allied Foresight Conference in Berlin - & delighted how much it resonated with the audience. Kudos to NATO ACT on a great event with a really expert crowd, top keynotes & insightful panels.

Great to be in Copenhagen for an excellent & highly productive workshop yesterday with defence officials, experts and military leaders - and now to participate in the Copenhagen Democracy Summit, which Helsing is proud to support. #CDS2026

Benjamin Tallis reposted

Replying to @bctallis.bsky.social

I love the realistic yet ambitious approach, focusing on the practical measures we CAN take to become a stronger sovereign player, partner & ally step-by-step. Clear diagnosis, guiding policy and prioritised, coherent and costed actions - this is the essence of strategy and essential reading.

I love the realistic yet ambitious approach, focusing on the practical measures we CAN take to become a stronger sovereign player, partner & ally step-by-step. Clear diagnosis, guiding policy and prioritised, coherent and costed actions - this is the essence of strategy and essential reading.

Up bright & early heading to London for the #AuroraForum Excited to represent Helsing & engage with decision-makers from across Nordic-Baltic region - especially on learning the right lessons from #Ukraine 🇺🇦 to address our vulnerability to Russian threat by embracing new defence tech

Procurement must be Timely as well as Transparent ✅ We have to move at the speed of relevance, the speed of military and geopolitical need. ❌Legacy models will be too slow and too expensive. Key message from Stephen Fuhr PC MP CD 🇨🇦 to a packed hall at the impressive CDAI #OttawaConference

Great to be at #CafeKyiv today & proud that Helsing supported this important event. It’s been inspiring to hear so many insightful points, catch up with friends united in the fight for our free future, & to see such strong political & public support for the defining cause of our times.

ICYMI! Great piece from @glandsbergis.bsky.social from before xmas on why Europe needs a new, two-track approach to deterrence - & fast! Europe’s security situation is changing fast— pretending otherwise is becoming dangerous & GL’s piece is even more pertinent now 🧵 table.media/en/security/...

table.mediaEurope needs its own deterrentThe former Lithuanian Foreign Minister, Gabrielius Landsbergis, is calling for Europe to have a deterrent of its own. In his view, Berlin has a central role to play here.
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🛡 Speed matters on the Eastern Flank Lithuania can’t wait years for heavy platforms. Rapidly fielded mass strike drones & 'deep & cheap' precision weapons would immediately complicate RU planning [if integrated into operational concept & with political will to use them!] 🧵

Bottom line Europe needs *both* a Berlin-centred shield & a distributed national deterrent asap. Failure to build credible deterrence risks being forced to fight on Russia’s terms - or being coerced & risking our democracies & our freedom. @glandsbergis.bsky.social table.media/en/security/...

table.mediaEurope needs its own deterrentThe former Lithuanian Foreign Minister, Gabrielius Landsbergis, is calling for Europe to have a deterrent of its own. In his view, Berlin has a central role to play here.

ICYMI! Great piece from @glandsbergis.bsky.social from before xmas on why Europe needs a new, two-track approach to deterrence - & fast! Europe’s security situation is changing fast— pretending otherwise is becoming dangerous & GL’s piece is even more pertinent now 🧵 table.media/en/security/...

table.mediaEurope needs its own deterrentThe former Lithuanian Foreign Minister, Gabrielius Landsbergis, is calling for Europe to have a deterrent of its own. In his view, Berlin has a central role to play here.
View full thread

🇱🇹 Track two: distributed national deterrence European states (especially on the flank) need quickly usable, national-level strike capabilities that don’t depend on lengthy NATO deliberation, which can buy time & allow allies to join the fight. 🧵

🇺🇦 Ukraine shows what’s possible Ukraine has used precision strikes to disrupt Russian forces deep behind the front & hit critical Russian assets. At greater scale, and strategically conducted, such capabilities would be a powerful deterrent. 🧵

ICYMI! Great piece from @glandsbergis.bsky.social from before xmas on why Europe needs a new, two-track approach to deterrence - & fast! Europe’s security situation is changing fast— pretending otherwise is becoming dangerous & GL’s piece is even more pertinent now 🧵 table.media/en/security/...

table.mediaEurope needs its own deterrentThe former Lithuanian Foreign Minister, Gabrielius Landsbergis, is calling for Europe to have a deterrent of its own. In his view, Berlin has a central role to play here.
View full thread

🕰 Slower, weaker responses The swift backlash after Salisbury in 2018 contrasts sharply with today’s drawn-out investigations and committees—something the Kremlin clearly notices. 🧵

So we need a new twin-track approach to deterrence 🇩🇪 Track one: centralised European deterrence Germany has the economic and industrial weight to anchor European defence, but rearmament timelines are too slow. Rapid procurement & fielding of massed capability is essential. 🧵

ICYMI! Great piece from @glandsbergis.bsky.social from before xmas on why Europe needs a new, two-track approach to deterrence - & fast! Europe’s security situation is changing fast— pretending otherwise is becoming dangerous & GL’s piece is even more pertinent now 🧵 table.media/en/security/...

table.mediaEurope needs its own deterrentThe former Lithuanian Foreign Minister, Gabrielius Landsbergis, is calling for Europe to have a deterrent of its own. In his view, Berlin has a central role to play here.
View full thread

🇷🇺Russia is testing our limits Moscow senses the shift, & the weakening of our deterrence, probing NATO airspace, infrastructure, and borders through persistent hybrid attacks without facing serious consequences. 🧵

So, @glandsbergis.bsky.social argues that there’s still too much comforting (but dangerous) legacy thinking. 📜Europe’s outdated assumption- For decades, challenging Europe also meant challenging the US. That assumption no longer fully holds, particularly on NATO’s eastern flank. 🧵

ICYMI! Great piece from @glandsbergis.bsky.social from before xmas on why Europe needs a new, two-track approach to deterrence - & fast! Europe’s security situation is changing fast— pretending otherwise is becoming dangerous & GL’s piece is even more pertinent now 🧵 table.media/en/security/...

table.mediaEurope needs its own deterrentThe former Lithuanian Foreign Minister, Gabrielius Landsbergis, is calling for Europe to have a deterrent of its own. In his view, Berlin has a central role to play here.

Key elements of @glandsbergis.bsky.social’s argument 🇺🇸 US shift & a weakening deterrent in the emerging new world order. Washington no longer treats European defence as a core interest [to put it mildly]. Commitments feel conditional, & deterrence—fundamentally psychological—is eroding.🧵

Great interview @shashj.bsky.social - & a super way to get a clearer understanding of Helsing’s vision, how we’re supplying Ukraine with advanced strike drones & building the capabilities that Europe needs for effective deterrence. Europe has the tools to take our future in our hands.

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New Tech ≠ Military Transformation - or advantage. A powerful reminder from fmr UK CDS Nick Carter in his new @WarOnTheRocks article Learning from #Ukraine & military history, real change needs integration, vision & realistic experimentation at scale warontherocks.com/2026/01/a-ne...

warontherocks.comA New Way of Warfare Requires More Than New TechWhen I look back at my 45 years of military service, one of the highlights of my military education was a battlefield tour I participated in during 2001

My top 20 reads of 2025 (incl a few evergreen re-reads) These books materially shaped how I think and work — and several translated directly into real professional impact. I’ve got a strong list for 2026, but I’m keen to sharpen it:  - what should I be reading next?

Military need & geopolitical reality not bureaucratic timelines or fiscal shortsightedness must drive Europe’s rearmament. We need to align pol, Econ & mil timelines to transform our forces, fast. Delayed deterrence is failed deterrence - & failed deterrence costs so much more.

Honoured to be at @rusi.bsky.social for CDS lecture in London. A broad ‘whole of society’ vision & strong words on lethality, but as the questions showed, UK need to dispel a perceived ‘say-do gap’. Building on Atlantic Bastion model to get new capability at speed & scale would do just that.

Next leg of the Winterreise. After a brief festive pit stop in beautiful #Prague, I’m now back on the road, heading to #London for meetings with experts & a special event. We have so much to protect - & much to do to protect it, but wherever I’ve been so far we’re stepping up.

Baby, it’s cold outside! Wonderful, short but intense wintry trip to #Ottawa. Great to check in with experts, policy shapers & industry players & feel the energy for defence transformation & building military capability using AI. Geopolitical winter is coming but we need to be #preparednotscared

Political will meets cutting edge expertise & industrial dynamism. ⏩🇩🇪🇨🇦🦾 It was an honour to co-lead the session on rising to new security challenges at the excellent German-Canadian AI Symposium in Montreal in the company of political, industry & AI leaders. Now we all need to deliver.

Munich was looking wonderfully festive, & it was a wrench to leave after such a flying visit - though we crammed a lot of work in with a high-intensity engagement with military leaders. But, it’s already ‘giddy up Jingle Horse’, and on to Montreal via, a lovely dawn, for the AI symposium.

It was an honour to engage with the Bundeswehr Führungsakademie Transatlantic Seminar at Helsing Munich on a crucial topic: - We need to master current & future shifts or face being mastered by our enemies.

Benjamin Tallis reposted

Europe must act now. We should use Russia’s frozen assets to provide a reparations loan that strengthens Ukraine’s ability to defend itself. This is fair, feasible and urgent. Leaders of 🇫🇮🇪🇪🇱🇻🇱🇹🇸🇪🇵🇱🇮🇪 to 🇪🇺 in the name of 🇺🇦

Our future is in our hands. I’m proud to be able to show what Helsing can do to help us all ensure that there’s plenty to cheer in festive seasons to come.

Benjamin Tallis@bctallis.bsky.social

Let’s go! Last trip of the year - and it’s a bumper tour of key spots for securing the future of our free societies. 🇩🇪Munich 🇨🇦Montreal 🇨🇦Ottawa 🇨🇿Prague 🇬🇧London 🇧🇪Brussels🇪🇺 Driving forward the defence of our democracies together with military, political & industry leaders.

Let’s go! Last trip of the year - and it’s a bumper tour of key spots for securing the future of our free societies. 🇩🇪Munich 🇨🇦Montreal 🇨🇦Ottawa 🇨🇿Prague 🇬🇧London 🇧🇪Brussels🇪🇺 Driving forward the defence of our democracies together with military, political & industry leaders.