The implementation of INTERACT (‘Interoperability Standards for Unmanned Armed Forces Systems’), a project selected under the 2019 call for proposals for the EU Preparatory Action on Defence Research (PADR) managed by EDA, was officially launched at an online kick-off meeting on 21 June 2021. The aim of this 1.5 M€ project, financed by the European Commission, is […]
Feasibility of a future European army
While there is no EU army and defence remains exclusively a matter for member states, the EU has recently taken big steps to boost defence cooperation. Since 2016, there has been significant progress in the area of EU security and defence with several concrete EU initiatives to encourage cooperation and reinforce Europe’s capacity to defend […]
EU Defence: New strategic activities identified for assessment
EDA’s Steering Board has just approved a list of 10 topics to be assessed by the Agency in the coming months for their potential to be considered ‘Key Strategic Activities’ for the European Union in their endeavour to move towards strategic autonomy in the security and defence domain. The selected topics are all related to […]
New opportunites for joint military capabilities to overcome fragmented European defence landscape
The first ever overview of the European defence landscape, the Coordinated Annual Review on Defence (CARD) report, identifies significant avenues for European defence cooperation with 55 new opportunities for countries to develop defence capabilities together. It recommends six next generation high impact capabilities as focus areas for joint European development efforts. The review also finds […]
EDA Annual Conference to focus on ‘Sustaining European Defence’
‘Sustaining European Defence’ will be the topic of this year’s EDA Annual Conference which will take place on 3-4 December 2020 in online format, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Registration is already open with only a restricted number of virtual seats available. Europe is facing up to the reality of before and after COVID-19. Today, four years […]
EU maritime security: from strategy to action
Europe’s maritime security has significantly improved over the last years on several aspects including international or regional cooperation, information sharing, capability development, risk management and training. This is the conclusion of a new report about the implementation of the EU’s maritime security strategy action plan, developed by the European Commission together with the European Defence […]
Experts reflect on hypervelocity systems
Experts from 12 EDA Member States as well as Norway and Switzerland participated in an online workshop organised by the Agency to identify and discuss research & technology needs as well as potential future applications of hypervelocity systems. The workshop (12-13 October) took place as part of an ongoing series of EDA Technology Foresight Workshops […]
The European Commission sets out a new EU Security Union Strategy for the period 2020 to 2025
The European Commission sets out a new EU Security Union Strategy for the period 2020 to 2025, focusing on priority areas where the EU can bring value to support Member States in fostering security for all those living in Europe. From combatting terrorism and organised crime, to preventing and detecting hybrid threats and increasing the resilience […]
EDA project aims for multifunctional smart textiles for defence
Smart textiles are a new generation of innovative material offering very interesting multifunctional properties such as being integrable into uniforms and platforms. They therefore have drawn the attention of the defence sector. Against this backdrop, EDA has incorporated smart textiles into the so-called Strategic Research Agenda (SRA) of its capability technology group (’CapTech’) devoted to […]