Europe needs a defence leadership structure outside the EU and NATO
Europe needs a defence leadership structure outside the EU and NATO

Following this weekend’s Munich Security Conference, one conclusion is unavoidable: a year into Donald Trump’s presidency and four years after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Europe must be able to organise its own defence without relying on the United States.  US Under Secretary of War for Policy Eldridge Colby told NATO defence ministers, in Brussels, last week that “NATO 3.0 requires

February 19, 2026

Europe needs a defence leadership structure outside the EU and NATO
Munich Security Conference 2026
Munich Security Conference 2026

Over the past year, the European Policy Centre’s Defence and Security project (DefSecEU) has published a series of reports outlining how Europe can assume greater responsibility for its own defence in this shifting geopolitical landscape. These publications provide essential background reading for the debates in Munich. Here is a selection: Quick march! Ten steps for

February 16, 2026

Munich Security Conference 2026
Europe’s Quiet Power: Why Strategic Autonomy Should Be Built on Existing Strengths
Europe’s Quiet Power: Why Strategic Autonomy Should Be Built on Existing Strengths

Reframing Europe’s Autonomy Debate Europe’s strategic autonomy is frequently discussed in the language of deficit: insufficient military integration, fragmented capital markets, slower growth, and technological dependency. While these constraints are real, they risk obscuring a more consequential reality: Europe is already a systemic power in the global economy. Unlike the United States and China, whose

February 12, 2026

Europe’s Quiet Power: Why Strategic Autonomy Should Be Built on Existing Strengths
Europe needs a defence leadership structure outside the EU and NATO
Europe needs a defence leadership structure outside the EU and NATO

Following this weekend’s Munich Security Conference, one conclusion is unavoidable: a year into Donald Trump’s presidency and four years after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Europe must be able to organise its own defence without relying on the United States.  US Under Secretary of War for Policy Eldridge Colby told NATO defence ministers, in Brussels, last week that “NATO 3.0 requires

February 19, 2026

Europe needs a defence leadership structure outside the EU and NATO
Munich Security Conference 2026
Munich Security Conference 2026

Over the past year, the European Policy Centre’s Defence and Security project (DefSecEU) has published a series of reports outlining how Europe can assume greater responsibility for its own defence in this shifting geopolitical landscape. These publications provide essential background reading for the debates in Munich. Here is a selection: Quick march! Ten steps for

February 16, 2026

Munich Security Conference 2026
Europe’s Quiet Power: Why Strategic Autonomy Should Be Built on Existing Strengths
Europe’s Quiet Power: Why Strategic Autonomy Should Be Built on Existing Strengths

Reframing Europe’s Autonomy Debate Europe’s strategic autonomy is frequently discussed in the language of deficit: insufficient military integration, fragmented capital markets, slower growth, and technological dependency. While these constraints are real, they risk obscuring a more consequential reality: Europe is already a systemic power in the global economy. Unlike the United States and China, whose

February 12, 2026

Europe’s Quiet Power: Why Strategic Autonomy Should Be Built on Existing Strengths

Latest Publication

View All

Munich Security Conference 2026

Over the past year, the European Policy Centre’s Defence and Security project (DefSecEU) has published a series of reports outlining how Europe can assume greater responsibility for its own defence

More

Munich Security Conference 2026

Over the past year, the European Policy Centre’s Defence and Security project (DefSecEU) has published a series of reports outlining how Europe can assume greater responsibility for its own defence

More

Europe’s Quiet Power: Why Strategic Autonomy Should Be Built on Existing Strengths

Ukraine is leading a military revolution but needs more Western support

U.S.–Iran Relations at the Edge: Nuclear Risk, Regional War Dynamics, and Europe’s Narrowing Policy Space

From Procurement to Deployment: Turkish Drones in Sudan’s War

Should Trump strike Iran? What happens next if he does?

Issues in focus

View All

Should Trump strike Iran? What happens next if he does?

The EU and India are creating a free trade area of two billion people. What’s next?

Sudan Under the Microscope: Uncovering a Pattern of Ethnic Violence Against the Kanabi Communities?

At Davos, Trump’s 19th-century instincts will collide with 21st-century uncertainty

Should Trump strike Iran? What happens next if he does?

The EU and India are creating a free trade area of two billion people. What’s next?

Sudan Under the Microscope: Uncovering a Pattern of Ethnic Violence Against the Kanabi Communities?

At Davos, Trump’s 19th-century instincts will collide with 21st-century uncertainty

What to watch as China prepares its digital yuan for prime time

Meet the team

View All

Dr Bojana Zori

Dr Bojana Zori is a Policy Analyst at the European Centre for Strategic Studies and Policy (ECSAP), specialising in the Western Balkans and the Eastern Neighbourhood. Her work focuses on political and security dynamics in these regions, with particular attention to emerging threats, the influence of external actors, and their implications for EU foreign policy and the enlargement process.

Len Moma

Len Moma is the editor in chief of European Centre for Strategic Studies and Policy (ECSAP). She specializes in Europe and the Middle East and the interplay between those two spaces. She has particular expertise on foreign and defense policy, European geopolitics, and the transatlantic relationship.

Alix Rondbary

Alix Rondbary. Prior to joining the European Centre for Strategic Studies and Policy (ECSAP)., Dr Alix was a Senior Advisor in the Asia-Pacific Department of the EEAS, acting as the Alternate EU SOM for the ASEM process. He was also a Member of the Cabinet of HR/VP Catherine Ashton with responsibility for Asia and the Pacific, Turkey, and the general issue of how to frame and strengthen the EU’s relations with its strategic partners. Between 2005 and 2009.

Dr Rosa Halon

Dr Rosa Halon is the director of the European Centre for Strategic Studies and Policy (ECSAP). Her fields of expertise include European politics, institutions, and foreign and security policy. Her current research focuses on the relationship between domestic politics and Europe’s global role.

She is the author of books, research-based articles, and opinion pieces in the international press on issues relating to European politics and international relations.

Dr Juseppe Spata

Dr Juseppe Spata is a Research Analyst at European Centre for Strategic Studies and Policy (ECSAP), where he leads the portfolio on transatlantic and EU-NATO relations and MENA.

In this capacity, he monitors trends and policy developments related to EU-US and NATO-EU relations, as well as the broader transatlantic relationship (North and South), covering the full range of security challenges.

Mila Pandrson

Mila Pandrson is a Research Analyst at European Centre for Strategic Studies and Policy (ECSAP). She leads the portfolio on Energy security.
Pandrson holds a MPhil in Regional Studies and History from the University of Oxford with a focus on the Southern Neighbourhood and the Middle East. He holds a BA with honours in International History from the London School of Economics (LSE).

Dr Bojana Zori

Dr Bojana Zori is a Policy Analyst at the European Centre for Strategic Studies and Policy (ECSAP), specialising in the Western Balkans and the Eastern Neighbourhood. Her work focuses on political and security dynamics in these regions, with particular attention to emerging threats, the influence of external actors, and their implications for EU foreign policy and the enlargement process.

Len Moma

Len Moma is the editor in chief of European Centre for Strategic Studies and Policy (ECSAP). She specializes in Europe and the Middle East and the interplay between those two spaces. She has particular expertise on foreign and defense policy, European geopolitics, and the transatlantic relationship.

Alix Rondbary

Alix Rondbary. Prior to joining the European Centre for Strategic Studies and Policy (ECSAP)., Dr Alix was a Senior Advisor in the Asia-Pacific Department of the EEAS, acting as the Alternate EU SOM for the ASEM process. He was also a Member of the Cabinet of HR/VP Catherine Ashton with responsibility for Asia and the Pacific, Turkey, and the general issue of how to frame and strengthen the EU’s relations with its strategic partners. Between 2005 and 2009.

Dr Rosa Halon

Dr Rosa Halon is the director of the European Centre for Strategic Studies and Policy (ECSAP). Her fields of expertise include European politics, institutions, and foreign and security policy. Her current research focuses on the relationship between domestic politics and Europe’s global role.

She is the author of books, research-based articles, and opinion pieces in the international press on issues relating to European politics and international relations.

Dr Juseppe Spata

Dr Juseppe Spata is a Research Analyst at European Centre for Strategic Studies and Policy (ECSAP), where he leads the portfolio on transatlantic and EU-NATO relations and MENA.

In this capacity, he monitors trends and policy developments related to EU-US and NATO-EU relations, as well as the broader transatlantic relationship (North and South), covering the full range of security challenges.

Mila Pandrson

Mila Pandrson is a Research Analyst at European Centre for Strategic Studies and Policy (ECSAP). She leads the portfolio on Energy security.
Pandrson holds a MPhil in Regional Studies and History from the University of Oxford with a focus on the Southern Neighbourhood and the Middle East. He holds a BA with honours in International History from the London School of Economics (LSE).

Dr Bojana Zori

Dr Bojana Zori is a Policy Analyst at the European Centre for Strategic Studies and Policy (ECSAP), specialising in the Western Balkans and the Eastern Neighbourhood. Her work focuses on political and security dynamics in these regions, with particular attention to emerging threats, the influence of external actors, and their implications for EU foreign policy and the enlargement process.

Len Moma

Len Moma is the editor in chief of European Centre for Strategic Studies and Policy (ECSAP). She specializes in Europe and the Middle East and the interplay between those two spaces. She has particular expertise on foreign and defense policy, European geopolitics, and the transatlantic relationship.

Alix Rondbary

Alix Rondbary. Prior to joining the European Centre for Strategic Studies and Policy (ECSAP)., Dr Alix was a Senior Advisor in the Asia-Pacific Department of the EEAS, acting as the Alternate EU SOM for the ASEM process. He was also a Member of the Cabinet of HR/VP Catherine Ashton with responsibility for Asia and the Pacific, Turkey, and the general issue of how to frame and strengthen the EU’s relations with its strategic partners. Between 2005 and 2009.

Dr Rosa Halon

Dr Rosa Halon is the director of the European Centre for Strategic Studies and Policy (ECSAP). Her fields of expertise include European politics, institutions, and foreign and security policy. Her current research focuses on the relationship between domestic politics and Europe’s global role.

She is the author of books, research-based articles, and opinion pieces in the international press on issues relating to European politics and international relations.

Dr Juseppe Spata

Dr Juseppe Spata is a Research Analyst at European Centre for Strategic Studies and Policy (ECSAP), where he leads the portfolio on transatlantic and EU-NATO relations and MENA.

In this capacity, he monitors trends and policy developments related to EU-US and NATO-EU relations, as well as the broader transatlantic relationship (North and South), covering the full range of security challenges.

Mila Pandrson

Mila Pandrson is a Research Analyst at European Centre for Strategic Studies and Policy (ECSAP). She leads the portfolio on Energy security.
Pandrson holds a MPhil in Regional Studies and History from the University of Oxford with a focus on the Southern Neighbourhood and the Middle East. He holds a BA with honours in International History from the London School of Economics (LSE).

Media

Discover more EUISS videos on YouTube

Explore our latest video content offering expert analysis and insights into key global and European security challenges.

Discover EUISS on Youtube