BRUSSELS: European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has proposed the creation of a new European Security Council to address emerging security challenges facing the region.
She made the proposal during her annual State of the Union address to the European Parliament.
The proposed council would seek to develop a coordinated European response to both conventional and hybrid threats.
It would include leaders from European Union member states as well as Britain, Norway, Canada and Ukraine, under the proposal.
The initiative would focus on a range of hybrid threats. These include cyberattacks, drone incursions, sabotage of critical infrastructure and arson.
European officials have frequently linked such incidents to Russian activity, although responsibility for individual incidents varies and is subject to investigation.
Why is a new security council being proposed?
The proposal comes as European countries face growing pressure to strengthen their own defence capabilities.
Questions over future US policy and Washington’s commitment to NATO have also added to the debate over Europe’s security role.
European policymakers have increasingly discussed greater strategic and defence autonomy amid uncertainty over the future direction of US policy.
Von der Leyen also called for a new response mechanism to deal with hybrid incidents.
The mechanism would aim to ensure a faster and more coordinated response when such threats occur.
Some defence analysts have raised questions about how the proposed council would fit within existing NATO structures.
Without a clearly defined role and policy framework, they say, the new forum could create overlap with existing institutions.
Others have warned that it could become mainly a political discussion platform if it is not backed by concrete mechanisms and commitments.
