[jltsiren]

This branch of the discussion was about "European governments" not treating theft of dual use technology from ASML as a national security concern. Except when it also involved a breach of sanctions against Russia.

Your perspective on national security is that of top leaders, whose opinions are shaped by their interactions with other leaders and policy experts. But in a democracy, legislators often matter more than leaders. Because legislators have to take public opinion (as mediated by the electoral system) into account, their interests tend to be in conflict with the leaders. And then, no matter how convincingly the leaders and policy experts argue for their positions, the legislators often win.

Patria is a poor example, because defense is an explicit national security concern in the relevant laws. Dual use technologies are not. Finland did not treat espionage against Nokia particularly seriously back in its glory days. While there were some attempts to tighten the laws, they met heavy opposition and had to be watered down. Ultimately Nokia was just a business, and there is always a degree of public schadenfreude when big important people fail to protect their secrets.