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Taking the Pulse: Can European Defense Survive the Death of FCAS?
Europe’s next-generation fighter plane has not even taken off, and it looks as though it will be grounded indefinitely. The drama surrounding FCAS does not bode well for Franco-German defense industrial cooperation. Germany has long sought to use the FCAS project to develop its own national aeronautics industry and skills…
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European Defence Projects of Common Interest: From Concept to Practice
European Parliament The development of European Defence Projects of Common Interest (EDPCIs) represents a decisive step towards strengthening the EU’s crisis response, economic competitiveness and strategic autonomy. EDPCIs aim to overcome fragmented national defence efforts by promoting joint development, production and procurement of key military capabilities, enhancing the EU’s governance…
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Which Type of Armament Cooperation Do We Want/Need? The Case of Spain
ARES Group (with Félix Arteaga) This paper is the second of the ARES series titled “Which type of armament cooperation do we want/need?”. The purpose of this series is to explore how EU Member States envision the future of armaments cooperation, taking in account the objective to develop joint procurement…
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Assessing Europe’s Resilience and Preparedness in an Era of Strategic Risks
The Hague Centre for Strategic Studies and CSDS By Hans Horan, Pieter-Jan Vandoren, Daniel Fiott and Jan Feldhusen with contributions by Davis Ellison and Frank Bekkers Europe’s security environment is increasingly shaped by “whole-of-society” shocks in which military threats intersect with climatic, economic and technological disruptions. This new reality demands…
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More Money, More Dependence? Financing EU Defence for Autonomy and Cooperation
Foundation for European Progressive Studies Europe is entering an era of unprecedented defence investment, with EU institutions and member states projected to spend nearly €6.8 trillion on defence by 2035. This surge comes amid a deteriorating security environment shaped by Russia’s war on Ukraine, growing transatlantic uncertainty and intensifying dependencies on non-EU defence…
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Beyond the Summit: Navigating the Future of NATO and European Defence
The Hague NATO Summit on 25 June 2025 will possibly go down in history as the moment when Europeans were put on serious notice by the United States that Washington was no longer going to subsidise European security. As a long-standing objective of the Trump administration, European allies were cajoled…
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Decarbonising Defence: Reconciling the Green Agenda with the Reindustrialisation of Europe’s Defence Sector
This commentary explores the intersection between Europe’s reindustrialisation of its defence sector and the European Union’s (EU) decarbonisation agenda. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has accelerated efforts to strengthen Europe’s defence technological and industrial base (EDTIB), yet this rearmament drive occurs alongside legally binding climate neutrality targets. The commentary examines whether…
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Ties That Truly Bind? The Potential for Defence Industrial Cooperation between South Korea, NATO and the European Union
Europe and South Korea are increasingly aligned in their pursuit of stronger defence industrial resilience amid intensifying geopolitical competition and technological disruption. Both actors recognise that defence production is now as much about economic sovereignty and technological leadership as it is about security. Europe and South Korea stand to benefit…
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The Price of Plenty: Industrial Overcapacities, China and European Defence
Despite the European Union’s (EU) steps in recent months to boost defence investment, the sector faces structural challenges, not least due to global industrial overcapacities. Large financial investments are being made in the European defence sector, but the EU must now address the structural issues that inhibit the growth of…
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The Three Images of EU Strategic Autonomy: Perspectives on Wedging, Binding and Hedging
This article considers concepts of European Union Strategic Autonomy in light of the growing scholarly literature on wedging and binding. The article presents three ideal types of strategic autonomy as the images of ‘responsibility’, ‘hedging’ and ‘independence’. It assesses each of these images against the wedging and binding strategies of…
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Return on Investment? Understanding the Rationales for Increased Military Expenditure in Europe
As an academic discipline, defence economics leans towards the conclusion that military expenditure does not contribute to economic growth, and, to the extent that it does, it is in limited areas. Ultimately, governments cannot justify defence expenditure based solely on potential economic returns, as military and strategic justifications are just…
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Counting on the Cloud? NATO, Digital Modernisation and Cloud Computing
NATO is enhancing its defence and deterrence in the face of grave geopolitical risks. While the major focus in 2025 is on ramping up the manufacturing of ammunition, missiles, tanks, armoured vehicles and more, there is a risk that the digital elements of the Alliance’s security and defence are marginalised…
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Money is Not Everything: How to Enhance the EU’s Security and Defence Readiness
The war in Ukraine and worrying shifts in the transatlantic relationship are forcing EU member states and institutions to think more seriously about Europe’s security and defence. Although the EU has had a Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) since the early 2000s, it is only in recent years that…
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The Defence Dilemma: Can Spain Ride Europe’s Defence Revival?
Defence has become a public policy area of the highest priority in Europe. As the war in Ukraine rages on and the second Trump administration encourages Europeans to take ownership of conventional defence within NATO, the European Union (EU) has launched a flurry of initiatives in recent years to bolster Europe’s military capabilities…
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Defence Innovation Trends: A Data Snapshot of the European Defence Fund, 2021-2024
The European Defence Fund (EDF) has been in operation since 2021 and has become an integral part of European efforts to enhance defence investments. Since 2021, the European Commission has invested €4 billion into 225 collaborative defence research and development (R&D) projects. A major challenge will be keeping the momentum…
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Sovereignty by Design? Security of Supply in Defence in the European Union
In 2025, security of supply in defence in the European Union is yet again on the policy agenda, especially given the ongoing war on Ukraine and shifts in the transatlantic relationship. In this policy paper, we take stock of the EU’s recent efforts to develop defence industrial policy and its…
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Hanging Together or Hanging Separately? Europe and the Indo-Pacific in United States-China Rivalry
The United States appears to be consistent on the idea that “great power” or “strategic” competition and, more specifically, “competition with China” stands out as its overriding national security priority. Insofar as Trump administration’s strategic approach towards Ukraine and Europe appears to be significantly informed by China and Indo Pacific-related…
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Europe’s Dual Challenge in the Trump Era
In the absence of the US security guarantee, Europe will have to rearm while also remaining united. The good news is that the Europeans are capable of achieving both—as long as they truly want to. When faced with the second Trump presidency, Europe may be experiencing all five stages of…
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Primed for Deterrence? NATO and the Indo-Pacific in the Age of Great Power Competition
As the United States prioritises deterrence of China in the Indo-Pacific, the question of how Europeans can take primary responsibility for conventional defence in Europe will take centre stage at NATO’s upcoming 76th Summit in The Hague. Against this backdrop, the future of the Alliance’s own Indo-Pacific agenda hinges on…
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Going it Alone, Doing So Divided? The Era of Uncertainties and Europe’s Defence Industrial Politics
Despite the epoch changing nature of Russia’s war and the second Trump presidency, Europeans do not yet appear ready for more European Union (EU) defence integration. The European Commission has designed a credible package of defence industrial initiatives, detailed its White Paper, but some schemes risk reinforcing the very structural…
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Special Delivery? The European Council and the March 2025 Defence Summit
The 6 March 2025 European Council special meeting focused on European defence and support to Ukraine. European leaders have put-off answering fundamental questions related to European security guarantees. The special European Council meeting set the parameters for a substantial increase in European defence spending. CSDS Policy Brief Read
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Spending Our Way Out of a Crisis? The Challenges and Benefits of ReArming Europe
The European Commission has announced a €800 billion increase in defence spending, but this figure masks the challenges facing Europe’s defence market. The injection of €150 billion worth of loans for defence raises questions about the real needs of Europe’s defence. The European Commission is set to introduce a raft…
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All in? The revival of the Spanish and European defence industry
Meeting at an informal leaders’ retreat in Brussels in early February 2025, EU leaders were keen to establish the political guidelines for a host of defence policy developments in 2025. In the context of the continuing war against Ukraine, and the uncertainties posed by the new US Administration, Europeans are…
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Unity is Not Enough: How will Europe Navigate the Trumpian Era of Geopolitical Competition?
The second Trump presidency will in many ways be unique, but Europeans will likely still pursue the short-term tactics of keeping a low profile or enhancing bilateralism with the United States (US). Europeans may try to play President Trump at his own game through transactionalism, or to engage with China…
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Integrated Arsenals? Mapping Defence Industrial Relations Between Europe and Ukraine
Since Russia’s war on Ukraine, defence industrial cooperation between the European Union and Ukraine has been put high on the agenda. In addition to the armament deliveries being made to Kyiv, there is now the ambition to integrate Ukraine within the EU and the European Defence Technological and Industrial Base.…
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Manufacturing Defence: Europe, the Republic of Korea and Defence Industrial Cooperation
South Korea has emerged as a major supplier to European militaries, and this has helped with Europe’s imminent need for military rejuvenation. Given the quality of South Korean defence equipment and supplies, Seoul is viewed with credibility in the defence sector and this bodes well for future cooperation. There remain…
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Wait and See? The Dynamics of Europe’s Evolving Approach to the Sahel
13/2024 Having faced a series of coup d’états in recent years, the Sahel region is marked by instability and it raises fundamental security questions for Europe. In a context where European governments are responding to Russia’s war on Ukraine, and where crisis management is viewed with less salience, the Sahel…
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L’Union européenne de la défense: Commentaire article par article
L’Union européenne de la défense, qui se construit depuis quelques années dans un contexte sécuritaire préoccupant, dépend du droit de l’Union, c’est-à dire tant des règles fixées par les États membres dans les traités que de celles adoptées par les institutions européennes. En effet, l’Union européenne de la défense ne…
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The European Defence Commissioner is Here
By introducing a defence commissioner, Ursula von der Leyen’s second European Commission makes clear that Europe’s security is an urgent priority. Defence industrial policy will, by necessity, be a key focus. IP Quarterly, 2024 Read Image credit: All rights reserved Copyright owner © John Thys/Pool via REUTERS
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Keep it Moving: From Mobility to Logistics in European Defence
The European Union (EU) has been developing military mobility, but so far with mixed results. It is time to rethink these efforts by investing more generally in military logistics. With the forthcoming “Niinistö Report” and defence White Paper, there is an opportunity to develop the EU’s defence preparedness and make…
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Daniel Fiott 