Event Summary
MSC hosts Digital European Defense Roundtable
Together with Institut Montaigne and the Royal United Services Institute, the Munich Security Conference brought together senior decision-makers and experts from France, Germany, and the United Kingdom to discuss ongoing joint European military operations. At the beginning of the event, Tobias Ellwood, Chairman of the Select Committee on Defence of the House of Commons, and Wolfgang Hellmich, Chairman of the Defense Committee of the German Bundestag, gave introductory statements.
On July 16, 2020, the Munich Security Conference (MSC), together with Institut Montaigne and the Royal United Services Institute hosted a high-level digital event titled “Keeping P(e)ace: Lessons from Ongoing European Military Operations.” With this event, the three institutions continued their series of joint roundtables that seeks to foster dialogue on European defense and security challenges, particularly focusing on the evolving roles of France, Germany, and the United Kingdom. Following the inaugural event at the Munich Security Conference 2019 and the European Defence Roundtable 2019 in London, this virtual roundtable preceded the third installment in Paris, planned for this autumn.
Designed as a small, confidential format, the event brought together a distinguished group of representatives from governments and parliaments, the military, and academia. Tobias Ellwood, Chairman of the Select Committee on Defence of the House of Commons, and Wolfgang Hellmich, Chairman of the Defense Committee of the German Bundestag, opened the discussion with brief remarks on the challenges and prospects for European military operations and their implications for defense and security cooperation.
Closer cooperation is becoming more important
Against the backdrop of a deteriorating global security environment and multifold crises in the European neighborhood, participants stressed the need to further strengthen cooperation in European defense capabilities as well as in joint peacekeeping missions and crisis response operations. In this context, the importance of close ties between the UK and the EU post-Brexit was highlighted, as was the crucial role of further fostering NATO-EU cooperation.
While some participants argued that important steps of progress were achieved, for example regarding deeper defense cooperation between France and Germany, the majority addressed persisting deficits in European security and defense cooperation. The discussion acknowledged shared European security interests and an increasing willingness in politics and the military to collaborate more deeply – but also addressed the lack of a common strategic outlook and a joint European threat assessment as well as deficits at the operational level. Given rising security risks, for instance in the Sahel region, and quickly evolving regional and international security dynamics, the need for a more united European response, particularly in the field of peace operations, was a key takeaway of the event.
About the Defense and Security Series
Find out more about the MSC Defense and Security Series. If you would like to learn more about transatlantic security and European defense cooperation, read our report "More European, More Connected and More Capable: Building the European Armed Forces of the Future".
About the Digital Conversations
In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, the Munich Security Conference has created a new event format: the MSC Digital Conversations. Here, decision-makers and experts regularly discuss challenges and possible solutions to security implications emerging from the COVID-19 crisis as well as other pressing issues. Learn more about the Digital Conversations.
