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Articles by Daniel Fiott
From Strategic Dependence to European Military Autonomy ? Daniel Fiott
Accueil > Union européenne > Institutions Daniel Fiott is a Research Professor at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel and a Non-Resident Senior Fellow at the Real Instituto Elcano. He specialises in European defence and European defence-industrial policy. Daniel Fiott est professeur de recherche à la Vrije Universiteit Brussel et chercheur senior associé non résident au Real Instituto Elcano. Ses travaux portent principalement sur la défense européenne et la politique industrielle européenne de défense.
Brussels 360 – 2027 Edition
Course introduction The “Brussels 360” Executive Course aims to provide participants with a deeper and more critical understanding of Europe’s role in a world in flux. The onset of Sino-American strategic competition and Russia’s war in Ukraine are having profound effects on Europe’s security architecture and Europe’s global role.
Up in the Air: What Could FCAS Mean for Common EU Defence Projects?
CSDS POLICY BRIEF • 6/2026 By Daniel Fiott 4.3.2026 Key issues The FCAS project appears to be over, at least in its original incarnation, although technological elements of the project may be salvaged, such as the development of a combat cloud; The case of FCAS serves as a cautionary tale for how to develop collaborative defence industrial programmes in Europe, especially when these projects involve large defence firms and member states; The failure of FCAS should not hinder plans for joint...
Vacancies - The Weaponisation of Ideas: US-China Competition in the Symbolic Field
We are looking for a Post-Doc and PhD researcher for our project “The Weaponisation of Ideas: US-China Competition in the Symbolic Field“, which examines a neglected but increasingly important dimension of United States-China competition: the role of ideas, culture and symbolism.
CSDS Annual Report 2025
In 2025, the Centre for Security, Diplomacy and Strategy (CSDS) continued to emerge as a key location within the Euro-Atlantic’s analytical ecosystem, reflecting both our research quality and the growing need for rigorous strategic reflection. CSDS continued to generate policy-relevant analysis on contemporary security and diplomatic challenges, with a particular focus on their implications for Europe.
Assessing Europe’s Resilience and Preparedness in an Era of Strategic Risks - HCSS
Europe’s security environment is increasingly shaped by “whole-of-society” shocks in which military threats intersect with climatic, economic and technological disruptions. This new reality demands that preparedness and resilience be treated as mutually reinforcing strategic imperatives for both the EU and NATO. Yet Europe’s baseline levels of resilience remain highly uneven.
The defence dilemma: can Spain ride Europe’s defence revival?
Executive summary[1] Defence has become a public policy area of the highest priority in Europe. As the war in Ukraine rages on and the second Trump administration encourages Europeans to take ownership of conventional defence within NATO, the European Union (EU) has launched a flurry of initiatives in recent years to bolster Europe’s military capabilities and revitalise Europe’s defence industrial and technological base. What does this mean for Spain?
El dilema de la defensa: ¿puede España capitalizar la revitalización de la defensa europea?
Resumen ejecutivo[1] La defensa ha pasado a ser una prioridad para la política pública en Europa.
Europe’s Dual Challenge in the Trump Era
When faced with the second Trump presidency, Europe may be experiencing all five stages of grief at the same time: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. Where Europe’s defense and deterrence are concerned, the stakes of coming to terms with the new US administration could not be higher.
¿A por todas? El renacer industrial de la defensa española y europea
Tema España debe adaptar su enfoque ante la rápida evolución de la política industrial de defensa de la Unión Europea. Resumen En una reunión informal celebrada a principios de febrero de 2025 en Bruselas, los dirigentes de la Unión Europea (UE) manifestaron su deseo de establecer las directrices políticas para implantar una serie de avances en la política de defensa en 2025.
All in? The revival of the Spanish and European defence industry
Theme Spain needs to adapt its approach to the rapid evolution of the EU’s policy on the defence industry. Summary Meeting at an informal leaders’ retreat in Brussels in early February 2025, EU leaders were keen to establish the political guidelines for a host of defence policy developments in 2025.
Une stratégie industrielle de défense pour l’UE. Quelles perspectives ?
La première Stratégie industrielle européenne de défense (EDIS) a été récemment publiée. Elle vise haut, en fixant des objectifs tels que l’acquisition d’au moins 40 % des équipements de défense de manière collaborative d’ici à 2030 ou la dépense de 50 % de son budget d’acquisition de défense au sein de l’UE d’ici à 2030 et de 60 % d’ici à 2035. Il s’agit d’un pas en avant symbolique important, mais n’est-ce pas un peu tard ?
The European Defense Commissioner Is Here
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s long-awaited unveiling of her “college” of commissioners for her second term came with some surprises, including in the shape of Andrius Kubilius. The 68-year Lithuanian is the European Union’s first ever defense commissioner. For him to feel his way into the new role, it will be essential to ensure smooth interrelations with the other commissioners in the college.
A partner of choice? Spain’s performance in the European Defence Fund in 2023
Theme Following the 2023 call results, Spain is performing positively in the European Defence Fund. Summary Since 2021 there have been three calls of proposals under the European Defence Fund (EDF). The 2023 results publicly released by the European Commission in May 2024 reveal that Spain continues to perform well as to the Fund.
¿Un socio de elección? El desempeño de España en el Fondo Europeo de Defensa en 2023
Tema El análisis de los resultados de la convocatoria de 2023 apunta al buen desempeño de España en el Fondo Europeo de Defensa. Resumen Desde 2021, ha habido tres convocatorias de propuestas para el Fondo Europeo de Defensa (FED). Los resultados de 2023, que la Comisión Europea ha hecho públicos en mayo de 2024, muestran que España sigue haciendo un buen trabajo en el contexto del Fondo.
¿Más allá de la estrategia? Estrategia industrial y futuro de la defensa europea
Tema La puesta en práctica de la Estrategia Industrial de Defensa Europea se enfrenta a retos considerables. Resumen El 5 de marzo de 2024, la Unión Europea (UE) hizo pública su primera Estrategia Industrial de la Defensa Europea.
¿Más allá de la estrategia? Estrategia industrial y futuro de la defensa europea
Tema La puesta en práctica de la Estrategia Industrial de Defensa Europea se enfrenta a retos considerables. Resumen El 5 de marzo de 2024, la Unión Europea (UE) hizo pública su primera Estrategia Industrial de la Defensa Europea.
Beyond Strategy? Industrial Strategy and the Future of European Defence
Theme There are considerable challenges facing the implementation of the European Defence Industrial Strategy. Summary On 5 March 2024, the European Union published its first ever European Defence Industrial Strategy. In the wake of Russia’s war on Ukraine, Europe understands that investing in its defence industrial and technological base is a core way of enhancing Europe’s defence, playing a bigger role in transatlantic burden-sharing and lowering manufacturing and technology dependencies.
War Economy: Ukraine, the European Union and the Defence Technological and Industrial Base
CSDS POLICY BRIEF • 11/2024 By Daniel Fiott 23.4.2024 Key issues Ukraine’s defence industry has become a central feature of the country’s military strategy against Russia, and the European Union (EU) understood early on the potential of cooperation with Ukraine in this sector; Ukraine’s integration into the European Defence Technological and Industrial Base will take time, and there is not yet an EU consensus on what this integration will look like in practice; Political challenges will...
Rewind and Reconnoiter: Russian Naval Power in the Black Sea with Daniel Fiott
In 2022, Daniel Fiott wrote “Relative Dominance: Russian Naval Power in the Black Sea” for War on the Rocks, in which he argued that enhanced support to Ukrainian naval forces would be required to break Russia’s relative dominance in the Black Sea. In response to a series of successful Ukrainian naval operations against Russia’s Black Sea fleet, we asked him to look back on his article. Read more below.
The Challenges of Defence Spending in Europe
There can be no doubt that Russia’s war on Ukraine has led to a sea change in the way that Europeans view defence. For more than three decades, European states have neglected their defence. This is not to say that they were militarily inactive, as the European Union (EU) in particular embarked on a series of crisis management operations over this thirty-year period.
From Liberalisation to Industrial Policy: Towards a Geoeconomic Turn in the European Defence Market?
References J. Adriaensen and E. Postnikov (eds) (2022) A Geo-economic Turn in Trade Policy? EU Trade Agreements in the Asia-Pacific (Cham, Switzerland: Palgrave Macmillan). (2019) ‘ National Expectations Regarding the European Defence Fund: The Spanish Perspective’, ARES Group Comment, No. 40. Available from: https://www.iris-france.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/ARES-40.pdf (2012) ‘Geo-economics and Strategy’. Survival, Vol. 54, No. 4, pp. 47–58.
In Whose Interests? Regulating Europe’s Defence Industry and the Politics of Exemptions
CSDS POLICY BRIEF • 3/2024 By Daniel Fiott 19.2.2024 Key issues The European Union (EU) needs to ramp-up its defence-industrial production and it is looking to do this with a new financial tool termed the European Defence Investment Programme (EDIP); The introduction of the EDIP will raise questions about the European Commission’s commitment to market liberalisation in the defence sector; Joint EU defence procurement will require an evolution of existing EU defence-industrial legislation, but...
Military-technological cooperation across the Euro-Atlantic and Indo-Pacific
The “AUKUS” agreement between Australia, United Kingdom and United States has emerged as the paragon of military-technological cooperation across the Euro-Atlantic and Indo-Pacific regions. There are considerable challenges to implementation. However, it is important that the AUKUS program be a success because it is a daring and novel approach to military cooperation and will enhance allied power in the Indo-Pacific region.
The Turning Tide? A European Agenda for the Washington Summit
By Daniel Fiott 09/2024 War has raged in Ukraine for close to two years now, and Russia’s illegal war continues to pose a strategic dilemma for NATO and the European Union. Although allies are producing more ammunition and equipment, there is a risk that Europeans do too little, too late. There may only be a slender opening of opportunity for states in the Euro-Atlantic region to address the profound challenges facing Ukraine and Europe.
Defence Matters: Ten Years of European Defence and What Has Really Been Achieved?
CSDS POLICY BRIEF • 32/2023 By Daniel Fiott 20.12.2023 Key issues Although European leaders stated that “defence matters” a decade ago, they have not used the past ten years to genuinely build up European defence. Many of the deficiencies in European defence identified back in 2013 persist today. The real test of European defence today is how the EU and NATO respond to the challenge of Russia’s military aggression and revisionism.
Europe’s Geopolitical Coming of Age Requires Greater Defense Efforts
Having already experienced what life is like under a Donald Trump US presidency, the Europeans presently seem rather blasé about what a potential second Trump administration could entail for the European Union and NATO. For all his (very real) sins, Trump gave voice to the long-standing tensions at the heart of the transatlantic relationship. Will Europe spend more on its defense? Are Europeans willing to do more to defend themselves?
The EU Defence Industrial Strategy: Some Preliminary Reflections
Daniel Fiott In advance of the 2024 EU Defence Industrial Strategy, and before I write a more focused and substantial piece of analysis, I wanted to lay out some key themes and issues that will confront the drafters of the new Strategy. First, let me say that the Strategy itself should be placed in its proper political context. It is, of course, questionable whether such a strategy should be released just before the EU heads towards parliamentary elections and a new Commission.
¿Invertir e innovar? España y el Fondo Europeo de Defensa
¿Cómo participa España en el Fondo Europeo de Defensa y qué beneficios obtiene? El presente análisis examina la participación de España en el Fondo Europeo de Defensa. Después de dos años de inversiones, ya se pueden utilizar los datos disponibles públicamente para sondear el modo en el que se está posicionando España dentro del Fondo.
¿Invertir e innovar? España y el Fondo Europeo de Defensa
¿Cómo participa España en el Fondo Europeo de Defensa y qué beneficios obtiene? El presente análisis examina la participación de España en el Fondo Europeo de Defensa. Después de dos años de inversiones, ya se pueden utilizar los datos disponibles públicamente para sondear el modo en el que se está posicionando España dentro del Fondo.
Investing and innovating? Spain and the European Defence Fund
How is Spain engaging with and benefiting from the European Defence Fund? This analysis looks at Spain’s involvement with the European Defence Fund. After two years of investments, it is possible to use publicly available data to probe the ways in which Spain is positioning itself within the Fund. The data not only show us how far Spanish entities are engaging in the Fund but also reveal important aspects of Spain’s overall defence industrial strategy.
Defence, Investment and Innovation
Europe’s defence landscape is being reshaped by war, innovation and geopolitical competition. The “Defence, Investment and Innovation” programme at the Centre for Security, Diplomacy and Strategy (CSDS) is designed to make sense of this transformation by focusing on how governments and institutions translate defence investments into credible military capability and a robust defence sector.
In Orbit: The European Union, Defence and Space Domain Awareness
Project description By Daniel Fiott 07.07.2023 Following the March 2023 publication of the European Union’s Space Strategy for Security and Defence, the Union has moved into new conceptual territory. In thinking about how to ensure its security and defence in outer space, the Union has emphasised the importance of “Space Domain Awareness”.
Order: the Financing of Alliances and Western Power
Project description By J. Alexander Thew, Daniel Fiott, Frank Finelli and Mickey P. Strasser 21.04.2023 Russia’s war on Ukraine and the rise of China are raising serious questions about order in international politics. If the West is to have a fighting chance at maintaining its military supremacy and upholding global order, it needs to answer some fundamental questions about the United States (US)-led alliance system and what is expected of allies.
Annus Horribilis: Russia’s War, Ukraine’s Struggle, Europe’s Future
Project description By Daniel Fiott 24.02.2023 One year on from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Europe continues to support Kyiv with military equipment and financial and political support. The bravery of Ukrainians is unparalleled, but, to truly support Ukraine, Europe needs to answer serious questions about its defence. Potential future turbulence in the transatlantic relationship means that European states have only a slender window of opportunity to put the EU and NATO on an ambitious footing.
A stellar moment? Spain, strategy and European space
How can Spain help enhance EU space, security and defence? This analysis looks at the shifting nature of space, security and defence in the EU. It provides an account of the growing geopolitical contest in space and stresses the vital importance of space for Europe’s strategic autonomy. What is more, the analysis looks at Spain’s approach to space, security and defence and it outlines how it is supporting the EU’s space efforts.
Inversiones colectivas en defensa: Europa debe hacer más y más rápido
Si Europa realmente desea crear una industria de defensa en común para enfrentarse a los retos futuros y colocarse como un actor creíble en la arena de la seguridad internacional, es necesario que sus Estados aumenten, tanto su acción en común como las sumas de dinero que destinan a ella. Desde el estallido de la guerra en Ucrania, la mayoría de los países del UE han declarado su intención de incrementar sus gastos militares.
Inversiones colectivas en defensa: Europa debe hacer más y más rápido
(*) Versión original en inglés publicada el 7/11/2022 en Euractiv. Si Europa realmente desea crear una industria de defensa en común para enfrentarse a los retos futuros y colocarse como un actor creíble en la arena de la seguridad internacional, es necesario que sus Estados aumenten, tanto su acción en común como las sumas de dinero que destinan a ella. Desde el estallido de la guerra en Ucrania, la mayoría de los países del UE han declarado su intención de incrementar sus gastos militares.
Relative Dominance: Russian Naval Power in the Black Sea
Relative Dominance: Russian Naval Power in the Black Sea Russia is struggling in its war on Ukraine. Kyiv’s military advances have allowed the country to seize back more of its territory, vindicating Western Read Full Article »
Relative Dominance: Russian Naval Power in the Black Sea
Russia is struggling in its war on Ukraine. Kyiv’s military advances have allowed the country to seize back more of its territory, vindicating Western efforts to deliver military equipment and weapons to Kyiv to stem Russian advances and to enable Ukrainian forces to retake territory Russia had annexed. In response, Russia has gone into a state of mobilization and formally annexed four territories, which President Putin has vowed to defend with whatever means necessary.
Rising Risks: Protecting Europe with the Strategic Compass
12.05.2022 Rising Risks: Protecting Europe with the Strategic Compass CSDS POLICY BRIEF • 10/2022 By Daniel Fiott The Strategic Compass will guide the direction of EU security and defence until 2030, and it does so by providing a single narrative for how, why and where the EU should act to protect its interests and values.
Strategic competition: Toward a genuine step-change for Europe’s defense industry?
Airbus. 2022. Europe’s Future Combat Air System: on the way to the first flight. 16 December 2022. Available at: https://www.airbus.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2022-12-europes-future-combat-air-system-on-the-way-to-the-first-flight (Accessed: 3 January, 2023). Angelet, B. 2022. The War Against Ukraine and European Defence: When Will We Square the Circle? Egmont Institute Security Policy Brief, 10 November 2022.
The Day After: the EU's Strategic Compass and the protection of Europe
The EU has spent the best part of 20 months working on its ‘Strategic Compass’ for security and defence, yet the war in Ukraine and the threat environment around Europe pose serious questions. If the Compass is to move from just another EU document to credible action, EU member states need to step up their investments in and commitment to European security and defence.
Type 2 respiratory failure secondary to left hemidiaphragmatic paralysis
Discussion The most likely cause of this patient's respiratory acidosis was left hemidiaphragmatic paralysis due to left phrenic neuropathy secondary to cervical spondylosis affecting the origin of the left phrenic nerve, as evidenced by the findings on MRI. Damage to the phrenic nerve could also have occurred following the previous gastric surgery or the complicating abscess or invasion by the tumour.
The Pathway to a Sovereign Europe
More than four years ago, French President Emmanuel Macron delivered a speech entitled “Initiative for Europe” to students at the Sorbonne in Paris. While perceived as an audacious speech at the time that introduced the notion of “European sovereignty,” the concept has since been taken up by others in Europe. In 2020, European Council President Charles Michel called the achievement of European sovereignty as the task of our generation.
European Union Institute for Security Studies
Over the past twenty years the European Union has enhanced its role as a security and defence actor. However, in a rapidly changing geopolitical environment, the Union faces new threats and security challenges and this calls for a unified, robust and far-reaching approach from the bloc and its Member States.
European Union Institute for Security Studies
The 2021 Yearbook of European Security provides an overview of events in 2020 that were significant for European security and it charts major developments in the EU’s external action and security and defence policy. The 2021 Yearbook of European Security contains region- and issue-specific sections, timelines of key events, lists of core EU documents, excerpts of relevant EUISS publications and an index.
Knowledge is Power? Technology and Innovation in the Indo-Pacific
Ever since the 1970s, the Indo-Pacific region has steadily become home to increasing levels of technological output, innovation, and people. During this period China’s economic opening, the United States’ technological dominance, and the broader processes of generalised economic globalisation have contributed to the formation of high-tech global value chains.
European Union Institute for Security Studies
The notion of European ‘strategic sovereignty’ is increasingly important to debates about the European Union. Given rapidly shifting global geopolitical and technology trends, and the seeming fragmentation of the multilateral order, the EU is being forced to confront its own position in international affairs.
European Sovereignty: Strategy and Interdependence
Abstract The notion of European ‘strategic sovereignty’ is increasingly important to debates about the European Union. Given rapidly shifting global geopolitical and technology trends, and the seeming fragmentation of the multilateral order, the EU is being forced to confront its own position in international affairs.
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