The 2026 edition brings together nearly 80 listeners representing 26 European countries: Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey and the United Kingdom, as well as four major European institutions: the European Investment Bank (EIB), the European Commission through its Department for Economic and Monetary Affairs, the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the European Investment Bank (EIB). DG DEFIS (Direction Générale de l'Industrie de Défense et de l'Espace), the Organisation for Joint Armament Cooperation (OCCAr) and the European Defence Agency (EDA).
Organised over four weeks in several European countries, the session aims to :
- deepen understanding of current European defence issues ;
- encourage the sharing of experience between civilian and military managers ;
- develop a shared vision of the continent's industrial and capability challenges.
Theme of this 37e edition :
- " Innovate, finance, scale up: building urgently Europe's defence of tomorrow "
Innovate, finance, develop: building tomorrow's European defence as a matter of urgency
Against a backdrop marked by the return of high-intensity warfare to Europe, technological acceleration and the rise of hybrid threats, the session will examine Europe's ability to innovate faster, finance its capability priorities and change industrial scale.
WEEK 1: OPENING IN FRANCE AND TRIP TO BRUSSELS
The first week of the SERA37 opened with a speech by Engineer General Alexandre Lahousse, Deputy Director General of the French Defence Procurement Agency (DGA), who presented the major capability and industrial challenges facing European defence.
The programme also included a number of conferences and discussions between listeners on the challenges of innovation, financing and industrial cooperation in Europe.
The last two days of this inaugural week took place in Brussels, where the auditors were welcomed by the European Defence Agency (EDA) for a presentation of its missions and its role in European capability cooperation.
The week ended with a high-level panel featuring :
- Baudouin Heuninckx, Director for Industry and Facilitators at the EDA
- Camille Grand, Secretary General of the Association of European Defence, Security and Aerospace Industries (ASD)
- Tomasz Husak, Director of Defence Policy at DG DEFIS
The auditors were also able to visit the European Council, at the heart of the Union's decision-making process on security and defence.
WEEK 2: AN IMMERSION IN THE HEART OF SPAIN’S DEFENCE AND INNOVATION ECOSYSTEM
From 20 to 24 April, in Madrid, our SERA 37 participants continued the work they had begun in Paris and Brussels in early March, deepening their understanding of the current challenges facing European defence and the industrial dynamics that are shaping the continent’s strategic autonomy today.
This new stage in their programme enabled them to gain a more detailed insight into the Spanish approach to defence strategy, technological innovation and industrial cooperation. Hosted by the Directorate-General for Defence Industry Strategy and Innovation (DGEID) at the Centre for Advanced National Defence Studies (CESEDEN), the participants enjoyed a week of fruitful discussions with the sector’s key institutional and industrial players. Meetings organised with the defence industry associations TEDAE and AESMIDE, in particular, provided a better understanding of the specific characteristics of the Spanish industrial ecosystem, its capabilities, its technological priorities and its role in the development of European defence cooperation. The week’s programme also included several visits to strategic sites, including the National Institute of Aerospace Technology (INTA), offering participants a practical insight into the country’s capabilities in research, innovation and defence technologies. Lectures, presentations and round-table discussions complemented these exchanges by putting Spain’s strategic priorities into perspective in the face of new European security challenges. This immersive programme concluded with a closing address by María Amparo Valcarce García, Secretary of State for Defence, who emphasised the importance of dialogue between institutions, industry and European stakeholders in order to collectively address current defence challenges.
Through this stop in Madrid, participants were able to broaden their understanding of the various national approaches to European defence and gain a better grasp of the challenges relating to innovation, industrial cooperation and the strengthening of European capabilities.
WEEK 3: A WEEK IN THE UNITED KINGDOM
From 18 to 22 May, it is the United Kingdom’s turn to host participants at the 37th European Session of Armaments Officers (SERA37).
The week, split between the Defence Academy in Shrivenham and London, featured a series of high-level conferences and round-table discussions on various topics, such as the UK’s industrial and international cooperation strategy, the role of innovation in shaping defence policy, and the strengthening of European collaboration. The delegation also had the opportunity to visit the Harwell campus, which is dedicated to research and innovation, particularly in the space sector. There, they visited the European Space Agency (ESA) site and met with various companies, including Open Cosmos, Magdrive and Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd (SSTL).
It was a week packed with insights, which provided an opportunity to explore this year’s theme – «Innovate, finance, scale up: urgently building Europe’s defence of tomorrow» – in greater depth and to gain a better understanding of the UK’s role within the European defence system.
WEEK 4: CLOSING OF SERA 37 AND TRIP TO RENNES
The final week of the SERA programme, from 22 to 26 June, featured a trip to Rennes to explore the local digital technology ecosystem. The students were able to visit a number of companies in Rennes, as well as the DGA MI site.
Another highlight of the week was the presentation of the committees’ work, attended by General Hervé de Courrèges, Director of the IHEDN, as well as numerous external guests. These presentations helped to inform strategic thinking on the future of European defence by proposing ways to accelerate innovation, effectively fund capability priorities, scale up industrial capacity and strengthen cooperation on armaments.
Following the closing lecture delivered by the French National Director of Armaments, General Engineer Gaël Diaz de Tuesta, the students were delighted to receive their diplomas.
These four fruitful weeks of training helped to foster a shared understanding amongst the participants of the current challenges relating to military capabilities, industrial cooperation and defence funding. Each of our 76 participants left with fresh insights into how to build the European defence of tomorrow.
See you next year for the 38th editionth SERA edition!
