Big news this morning about an upcoming #icebreaker deal between the US and #Finland. Trump and Stubb will meet on Thursday at the White House to sign a pact for the U.S. Coast Guard to buy up to four icebreaker ships from Finnish shipyards. www.reuters.com/world/us/tru...

Draghi, one year after his report, still not mincing words on EU industrial policy: “Europe’s response has fallen into two traps: uncoordinated national efforts, or blind faith that market forces will build new sectors.” Amen!

Only a strong and credible European defence posture will be able to guarantee our security. We have made historic progress in recent years to build our European Defence Union 🇪🇺 @vonderleyen.ec.europa.eu #SOTEU

SAFE: The European Commission published a tentative allocation of the €150 billion loans-for-weapons scheme among EU countries. Poland, Romania, France and Hungary are set to receive the biggest sums — respectively €43.7 billion, €16.6 billion, €16.2 billion and €16.2 billion.

The #transatlantic alliance is at a crossroads, and 🇩🇪 must navigate challenges: de-risking and rebuilding. We are inviting experts to explore a number of important topics, from civil society exchanges to issues related to defense acquisition. Apply by Sep 1! usboell.bamboohr.com/careers/81?s...

While no one disputes that Europe needs to do more for its defence, the focus on defence spending percentage of GDP won’t get us there. Indeed, making Europeans commit to an arbitrary spending target is the best way to keep Europe from reaching strategic autonomy. My rant in the @financialtimes.com

I mean look at this madness.

My new piece on yesterday's Franco-British summit for @ukandeu.bsky.social : ukandeu.ac.uk/the-franco-b...

Attention #Zeitenwende and #security nerds: My newest article on "German 'pacifism' and the Zeitenwende" is about to be published online in Defense & Security Analysis. In the article I try to assess to what extent the reorientation of German security policy after the

Norway joins NATO’s Forward Land Forces in Finnish Lapland.

Germany is getting serious about military procurement: 1000 Leopard tanks and 2500 Boxers are on the shopping list. (The Bundeswehr has currently about 300 Leopards) augengeradeaus.net/2025/07/auf-...

ICYMI | President of #Finland Alexander Stubb spoke at the @atlanticcouncil.bsky.social on European security post #NATO summit, as well as how #Europe is adapting to meet the current security environment. Check it out! www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ytwa...

Join @atlanticcouncil.bsky.social for a conversation this Thursday with Finnish President Alexander Stubb on European security after the #NATO Summit. #finland #turpo www.atlanticcouncil.org/event/finnis...

Trump confirms in a press conference at the #NATO Summit he wants to buy 15 #icebreakers from #Finland (possibly one that is 5-6 years old in the near-term). Negotiations are ongoing. #icepact #icebreaker #turpo www.youtube.com/live/7iY2VRD...

The Hague Summit Declaration has been released--the shortest declaration in #NATO history at just 400 words. Very telling in and of itself. But it will be referenced for decades as a major step in addressing burden sharing debates. www.nato.int/cps/en/natoh... #thehague #natosummit2025 #security

Nato members agree on 5% defence spending target https://on.ft.com/44nMBIn

Scrambling to reduce Canada's dependence on the Donald Trump-led U.S., the country's Prime Minister Mark Carney signed a security and defense partnership with the European Union.

UK defence funding will hit 5% of GDP by 2035, Starmer to tell Nato summit https://on.ft.com/4loXOPU

Great piece on planned #drone wall by #Estonia along its border with #Russia. defensescoop.com/2025/06/18/e...

No easy way out on Europe’s nuclear dilemmas, yet plenty to do, @claudmajor.bsky.social & I conclude. Are we too hopeful & unambitious? Tell us! Thanks to @constelz.bsky.social @brookings.edu for the initiative & opportunity. Look also at the great papers by @sophiabesch.bsky.social & Thomas Wright.

New piece out for @brookings.edu this week: www.brookings.edu/articles/how...

#Pentagon shifts #Greenland from the U.S. European Command area of responsibility to the U.S. Northern Command area of responsibility. www.defense.gov/News/Release...

A new report by the @kiel.institute shows that in March and April 2025, Europe surpassed the United States in the total value of military aid provided to Ukraine, for the first time since June 2022. 🇺🇦🇪🇺 🧵

The race to save the world's oceans is on. The United Nations Oceans Conference in Nice, France ended today with promises from world leaders to ratify a global, binding agreement to help protect the world’s oceans by September.

Check out the new report from me, @msnegovaya.bsky.social, Tina Dolbaia, and @maxbergmann.bsky.social on the Russian wartime economy, out now from @erep.csis.org at @csis.org. We do a deep dive on the Russian economy, and outline 3 scenarios for where it could be headed www.csis.org/analysis/rus...

I wrote this week on whether the UK’s strategic defence review has put the Royal Air Force back on a nuclear path, the advantages & downsides of UK participation in NATO nuclear sharing & the feasibility of the UK developing its own stand-off nuclear cruise missile www.economist.com/britain/2025...

Rutte: “last week, NATO Defence Ministers agreed ambitious new targets. The exact details are classified but we need…A 400% increase in air and missile defence.” www.nato.int/cps/en/natoh...

We’ve become basically desensitised to successive record breaking air attacks by Russia against Ukraine. “Russia launched almost 500 drones and missiles at Ukraine overnight, Ukrainian forces said on Monday.” www.nytimes.com/2025/06/09/w...

Over the weekend, #Finland PM Petteri Orpo announces his country will spend 5% of their GDP on defense by 2032, in line with the forthcoming #NATO Summit increase in minimum defense spending. www.helsinkitimes.fi/finland/finl... #turpo #suomi #natosummit #transatlanticsecurity

Podcast | War plan or wish list – The UK Strategic Defence Review Grace Cassy, @oliviaosullivan.bsky.social and @mgmessmer.bsky.social discuss the role drones, cyber warfare and traditional weapons systems play in the Strategic Defence Review. Apple: apple.co/3ZlQj3z Spotify: spoti.fi/4kR8aaL

Friedrich Merz returned with confidence from Washington today, expressing certainty about Donald Trump remaining committed to Europe’s security and being open to discussion with its allies.

❗Top Ten Time❗ What are the most popular CSDS analytical products of 2025, so far? Congratulations to all our authors and speakers on our list! Engage with our work: Policy Briefs🔸 csds.vub.be/policy-briefs/ In-Depth Papers🔸 csds.vub.be/in-depth-pap... Strategy Speaks🔸 csds.vub.be/podcasts/

Delighted to share I am joining the @atlanticcouncil.bsky.social as a Nonresident Fellow with the Transatlantic Security Initiative. It is an honor to join this outstanding community of experts as I look for my next full-time role. www.atlanticcouncil.org/expert/jason...

NATO allies are moving toward a new defense spending benchmark of 5 percent of GDP ahead of next month's crucial leaders' summit, alliance Secretary-General Mark Rutte said today.

Good call with POTUS. The EU and US share the world’s most consequential and close trade relationship. Europe is ready to advance talks swiftly and decisively. To reach a good deal, we would need the time until July 9.

Why both sides have good reason to limit their ambitions ahead of the EU-UK summit on Monday ukandeu.ac.uk/uk-eu-summit...

Keir Starmer: Why I love Eurovision — and my EU trade deal The Prime Minister has proposed a deal which will bring the UK closer to the EU than it has been since Brexit — and thinks the British public will back him up. Read the interview ⬇️

Opening panel #lennartmericonference in Tallinn. That’s Matthew Whitaker, the US ambassador to NATO, on the right. NATO dep sec’y general next to him. She says in early June all allies should agree on “very ambitious” set of capability targets that are 30% higher than last ones.

EU and UK leaders will meet in London on May 19th for their first formal summit since #Brexit. The atmosphere has certainly improved since the acrimonious period around Brexit. 🇪🇺 🇬🇧 🆕 insight by @aslak.bsky.social @cerianbond.bsky.social & Charles Grant Read here: buff.ly/kaSnhq0

Press communiqué from the meeting of Macron and Merz today in Paris. With two nuggets - a "Franco-German security and defence council" and a Franco-German programme for innovation in defence. www.elysee.fr/emmanuel-mac...

Joint procurement is back - and this time it's different and promises to be more successful than the painful attempts of the past. Sweden, Norway and Lithuania teaming up to buy 1,000 CV90s shows where things are heading. foreignpolicy.com/2025/05/05/e... Me @foreignpolicy.com. No paywall.

Merz is now sworn in as chancellor; his agenda for the next days clearly shows that Europe takes a central place in his agenda: - Wednesday: Paris, Warsaw - Friday: EU, NATO

FT Exclusive: The deal, set to be signed this week, is due to include quotas that spare some UK exports from the full brunt of the additional 25% tariffs that US President Donald Trump levied on steel and car imports. www.ft.com/content/ca38...

This is an ambitious and interesting proposal for a new order of cooperation in Europe, especially on security and defense, from @sophiabesch.bsky.social and Richard Young.

With transatlantic trade tensions escalating, Tobias Gehrke proposes a phased negotiation approach to navigate the challenges. This strategy aims to secure immediate relief, foster mid-term cooperation, and establish long-term stability in EU-US trade relations.

France’s Prime Minister François Bayrou said he is considering proposing a national referendum over the country's budget.

Uk MoD minister: "at a high level, we are seeing an increase in sub-threshold activity, which can have an influence on both the UK and our allies. Some of that is using technologies that already exist, such as drones." committees.parliament.uk/oralevidence...

Unhappy to confirm that the entire Historical Advisory Committee at the State Department received termination notices this afternoon (myself included). The HAC, set up by Congress, oversees the office that produces the FRUS series. history.state.gov/about/hac/in... 1/

💥 The EU is preparing a “plan B” on how to keep economic sanctions against Russia should Trump abandon Ukraine peace talks and seek rapprochement with Moscow, the bloc’s top diplomat @kajakallas.bsky.social tells @financialtimes.com enterprise-sharing.ft.com/redeem/fdda7...

🎧 New Podcast! In this emergency episode of World in 30 Minutes, Mark Leonard is joined by @jpuglierin.bsky.social , head of ECFR’s Berlin office, to break down what happens next in Germanys Government.