The European Defence Programme focuses on the future of European defence, in the frameworks of the EU’s Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) and NATO’s European pillar. It addresses the opportunities for enhancing EU-NATO relations, encouraging greater commitment to transatlantic burdensharing, strengthening the European defence industrial base and improving European cohesion on defence matters.
The recent call between President Biden and French President Emmanuel Macron has led some to believe that the US administration might be ready to shift its traditional position on EU defence. Max Bergmann, Senior Fellow at American Progress, argues that now is the time for the EU to come up with something tangible for America to get behind.
Turkey and the UK have great potential to strengthen their defence and security cooperation following their recent free trade agreement, write Tacan Ildem and Fatih Ceylan. To take this forward, they should elaborate a Joint Vision Paper (JVP) on enhanced Turkey-UK defence cooperation, to be shared within NATO.
Brexit incentivises the discussions about the role of the non-EU NATO members – including Turkey – in European defence and security, argue Ambassadors Fatih Ceylan and Tacan Ildem. They write that a process of developing a new transatlantic compact could be launched at the upcoming NATO Summit.
Three former Turkish ambassadors to NATO write on how and why to resolve the differences between Turkey and the US over the Turkish purchase of Russian made S-400 air defence systems.
Carlo Trezza looks at President Macron’s speech at the Ecole de Guerre last month on the possible role of French nuclear deterrence in the context of European security and defence.
President Macron’s recent remarks that NATO is “brain dead” can only be understood as an extension of already formulated policies, but it comes with risks, Axel Hellman and Andreas Persbo find on a recent trip to Paris.
ELN Policy Fellow Alice Billon-Galland participated in the Carnegie Europe Summer Academy on European defence industry in Brussels on June 20-21 2019.
Supported by the Romanian Presidency of the Council of the EU and the forthcoming Finnish presidency, the seminar sought to specify the trade-offs for “European sovereignty” in security and defence.
She took part in a closed expert lunch on “European Security and Defence” at the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Wednesday, May 29, 2019.