How the war in Ukraine changed Europe’s thinking on defense

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has rekindled Europe’s discussions around how to best arm itself, with many countries scrambling to invest more in their militaries. Yet questions remain about whether Europe has the capacity — or will — to reach major military goals. And divisions remain within the EU and NATO over who should shoulder the Continent’s security burden, how reliant Europe should be on U.S. military might, and where allies should focus their priorities in the coming years.

Questions to be addressed include:
• How does the war end?
• Has the EU been too slow in its military support for Ukraine? What more should it do?
• Now that battle tanks are on their way, are fighter jets the inevitable next step?
• Is nuclear escalation by Putin an empty threat?
• Will European public opinion remain behind efforts to support Ukraine?
• How does the war change the bloc’s thinking on EU-expansion — for Ukraine and other accession states?

Programme

4:00 PM CEST

Welcome remarks by POLITICO’s moderator, Lili Bayer

4:05 PM CEST

Introductory remarks by our partner, Martens Center

• Mikuláš Dzurinda, president, Wilfried Martens Centre for European Studies

4:10 PM CEST

Panel discussion including Q&A

• Max Bergmann, director, Europe Program and Stuart Center in Euro-Atlantic and Northern European Studies, CSIS 
• Muriel Domenach, ambassador, Permanent Representation of France to NATO 
• David Quarrey, ambassador, Permanent Representation of the United Kingdom to NATO 

Moderated by Lili Bayer, senior reporter, POLITICO 

4:55 PM CEST

Closing Remarks