Defence: UK Relations with EU
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent discussions he has had with his counterparts in the European Union on defence co-operation.
Answered by Louise Sandher-Jones
In May 2025, the UK agreed a Security and Defence Partnership (SDP) with the European Union, as part of this Government’s commitment to strengthening European security, supporting economic growth and reinforcing NATO.
Since then, the UK has maintained regular and constructive dialogue with the EU at multiple levels to implement the SDP. The Defence Secretary and the Foreign Secretary jointly hosted the first formal foreign and security policy dialogue in October 2025. In addition, officials from the Ministry of Defence and Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office have engaged with EU counterparts through a Security and Defence Dialogue held in March. This is in addition to ongoing engagements through Coalition of the Willing talks, and dialogues on thematic security issues including hybrid threats.
We remain committed to defence cooperation with the EU and European partners that aligns with our NATO First policy and delivers for the UK taxpayer.
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