Underlining the deteriorating geopolitical context, MEPs on Wednesday 21 January said that the United States’ National Security Strategy, presented in December 2025, reinforced the urgent need for Europe to assume responsibility for its own security.
In the 2025 report on the implementation of the Common Security and Defence Policy by Thijs Reuten (S&D, Dutch), which they adopted by 395 votes to 197 with 70 abstentions, MEPs recognise NATO’s crucial role in Europe’s collective defence, but warn, in particular, against the risks posed by the “growing unpredictability, short-sighted isolationism and self-centredness” in US foreign policy.
However, they stress that the United States remains “the EU’s most important strategic ally”.
Thus, despite the current difficult relations, the European Parliament underlines the need to encourage dialogue and close cooperation between the Union and the United States.
With regard to Greenland, it expressed concern at the interference of third countries and the explicit threats made by the US government against the territory’s sovereignty.
In addition to its relationship with the United States, the European Parliament advocates the development of security and defence partnerships.
Parliament stresses as well the need to increase defence spending in a coordinated manner and to strengthen its own defence capabilities and readiness “with the aim of ensuring strategic autonomy”. According to the MEPs, part of national defence budgets should be pooled at EU level in order to generate economies of scale and invest in capabilities used for collective defence.
Without going as far as a European army, the European Parliament proposes that the Union’s rapid deployment capability should become a multinational force that could be expanded to a larger force of more than 60,000 troops.
Over and above the purely defence aspects, MEPs are calling for the CSDP’s civilian and military missions and operations to be strengthened by means of “robust, flexible, scalable and modular” mandates and for them to be provided with adequate resources, funding and manpower.
The report also focuses on the situation in Ukraine, giving its full support to the country, but also to countries affected by Russian hybrid actions.
To see the report: https://aeur.eu/f/kbv (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)