Defence and security Archives

Bringing a 1950s radioactive technology capable of wiping out cities into a high-tech environment is a recipe for suicide, says 2017 Nobel Peace Prize laureate Beatrice Fihn. She spoke to EURACTIV.com about nuclear deterrence, arms control ambitions and the current INF Treaty debate.

EURACTIV gives you a glimpse into the hot topics of this year’s Munich Security Conference and what is driving the conversation on foreign, defence and security policy from Day 2. On the menu: Merkel, Pence, Lavrov, climate change, Balkans.

Demands for a stronger EU and foreign policy, more commitments to NATO and concerns over Russia’s assertiveness were the leitmotifs as the 55th Munich Security Conference kicked off on Friday (15 February).

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo met with the EU's top diplomat in Brussels on Friday (15 February), a day after Vice President Mike Pence accused America's traditional European allies of trying to undermine U.S. sanctions against Iran.

This week marks the 40th anniversary of the revolution that overthrew the Shah in Iran and created the Islamic Republic. It is a good time to review the position of the European Union and its member states towards this totalitarian theocracy, argues Alejo Vidal-Quadras.

In the aftermath of US President Trump's withdrawal from the landmark nuclear arms-control accord earlier this month, NATO allies on Wednesday (13 January) met in Brussels to plan for a future that includes a “Russia with more missiles.”

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo voiced hope Monday (11 February) that renewed American engagement with Hungary's Viktor Orbán would help steer the increasingly authoritarian leader away from Russian and Chinese influence.

EU lawmakers failed to seal an agreement on the future of the European Defence Fund (EDF) despite a nine hour negotiation session last week.

Britain should be ready to use military force to support its global interests after Brexit, defence minister Gavin Williamson will say on Monday (11 February), adding that the boundaries between peace and war are becoming blurred.

When Secretary of State Mike Pompeo visits Hungary, Slovakia and Poland this week he wants to make up for a lack of US engagement that opened the door to more Chinese and Russian influence in central Europe, administration officials say.

Russia's Ministry of Defence said on Thursday (7 February) that the United States should destroy its MK-41 missile defence launch systems deployed in Romania in order to return to compliance with a Cold War-era nuclear pact.

NATO signed the accession protocol with North Macedonia on Wednesday (6 February). The military alliance also decided to hold a summit in London in December, when North Macedonia could officially join the alliance.

Russia will race to develop two new land-based missile launch systems before 2021 to respond to Washington’s planned exit from a landmark nuclear arms control pact, it said on Tuesday (5 February).

France and Germany will on Wednesday (6 February) announce a 65 million euros contract financed equally by both countries over two years as the first act of the joint programme to design a next-generation combat jet, a French army source said.

Russia has suspended the Cold War-era Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces Treaty, President Vladimir Putin said on Saturday (2 February), after the United States announced it would withdraw from the arms control pact, accusing Moscow of violations.

Germany said Friday that Russia had "de facto invalidated" a landmark Cold War missile reduction treaty which the US is poised to abandon, with Europe anxious at the prospect of a new arms race.

Britain, France and Germany on Thursday (31 January) launched a trade mechanism to bypass US sanctions on Iran, drawing praise from Tehran – and a warning from Washington.

The United States will soon announce plans to suspend compliance with a landmark nuclear missile pact with Russia, responding to an alleged violation of the treaty by Moscow, US officials said on Thursday (31 January).

Against a backdrop of US decline and an influential China and Russia, Europe must overcome its internal challenges and shoulder its responsibilities as a leader on the world stage, writes Robert Malley.

The United States has offered to hold arm control talks with Russia during a United Nations meeting in Beijing next week that would almost certainly cover a long-running feud over a Cold War-era treaty, a senior State Department official said on Thursday (24 January).

Russia on Wednesday (23 January) unveiled a missile system that Washington claims is in violation of a key arms control treaty, in a last-minute bid to counter US criticism and save the Soviet-era agreement.

Make no mistake: Brexit will damage our security. It will weaken the UK more, but it will weaken the EU too, writes Matthieu Borsboom.

After talks between Washington and Moscow to save a Cold War arms control treaty collapsed this week, the United States announced on Wednesday (16 January) it would no longer consider itself bound by the treaty obligations in under two weeks times.

Croatia's attempt to buy F-16 jet fighters from Israel has fallen through after Washington blocked the $500 million plan to have the fighters modernised in Israel, in a major setback for the country's efforts to revamp its armed forces. EURACTIV Croatia reports.