EU defence commissioner suggests new security alliance including Ukraine

European Commissioner for Defence and Space Andrius Kubilius has proposed exploring the creation of a new European defence alliance that could include Ukraine, arguing that Kyiv's accession to NATO remains unlikely in the near term.

In an interview with Germany's Der Spiegel magazine, Kubilius said Ukraine's path to NATO membership faces significant obstacles, while full membership in the European Union is also expected to take time.

“In the short term, Ukraine’s membership in NATO is impossible, and full accession to the EU will likely take time,” Kubilius said. He suggested that a group of European countries could pursue deeper defence integration through what he described as a “coalition of the willing” or a “European defence union.”

According to Kubilius, such an arrangement could be based on Article 42.7 of the Treaty on European Union, which contains the bloc’s mutual defence clause. He emphasised that the initiative would complement, rather than compete with, NATO.

The commissioner said participation would not necessarily include all EU member states. Instead, a smaller group of countries could cooperate more closely on defence matters, enabling faster decision-making and more flexible leadership structures than those requiring unanimous approval across the entire European Union.

Kubilius compared the concept to existing forms of differentiated integration within the EU, such as the eurozone, where only some member states participate.

He also suggested that non-EU countries with close security ties to Europe could potentially join the initiative. In addition to Ukraine, possible participants could include the United Kingdom, Norway, and potentially Türkiye, he said.

By Sabina Mammadli