Defence for Europe: harmonising the capability response
Committee 1
If we consider Europe as a geographical entity, its collective security rests on the two pillars of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), a politico-military alliance focused on the collective defence of its members, and the European Union (EU), a political and economic partnership that has extended its action to the security of its territory and its populations. In a changing geostrategic and political context (Brexit, the United States' Asian pivot, the global health crisis, etc.), European states have many different perceptions of European defence, especially given their different memberships in different organisations and their different post-World War II histories.
This report endeavours to show that it is important, over and above differences of opinion, to bring Nations closer together around the fundamental and complementary issues of Euro-Atlantic convergence on the one hand, and the promotion of European strategic autonomy on the other.
Although the relationship between NATO and the European Union is long-standing and normalised, the conditions for coordinating efforts and rationalising resources between the two organisations still need to be strengthened, in order to provide European states with defence tools that are mutually beneficial to NATO and the EU.
This report makes recommendations for aligning the will of NATO and the European Union in the area of capabilities and laying the foundations for a new framework for cooperation to develop European strategic autonomy.
As defence is an area of sovereignty par excellence, changing processes, improving coordination, rationalising requirements and simplifying procurement are all keys to success in building Europe's defence. A step-by-step approach based on existing dynamics, whether operational with the European Intervention Initiative (EII), political with climate change or technological with cyber and space, will enable the Member States to make the necessary efforts to meet the challenge of harmonising capabilities between Nato and the EU.
The work on this report was based on numerous conferences, a comprehensive bibliography and around thirty interviews with political, military, industrial, academic and civil society leaders in Europe and the United States.
This work was also informed by exchanges with the Eisenhower School at the National Defence University in Washington.
