Coalitions of the willing in action: the role of non-EU NATO members in Europe’s security and defence

As Europe’s security architecture undergoes a significant transformation, this panel examines how non-EU NATO members contribute to European security and explores ways the EU can integrate these partners into a flexible and cohesive framework moving forward.

Europe’s security architecture is undergoing a profound transformation in response to new collective threats and the United States’ increasingly transactional foreign policy centred on its own interests and its ever-challenging approach to NATO allies. In this context, the European Union has advanced its vision of Open Strategic Autonomy (OSA), seeking greater flexibility and resilience in security and defence. Furthermore, the concept of the coalitions of the willing has become a central part of responding to security challenges, starting with the Russian full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Yet, achieving these goals also depends on how effectively the EU engages with key non-EU NATO members such as the UK, Türkiye, Norway, and Canada.

Against this backdrop, the panel will discuss answers to critical questions, including:

• What can key non-EU members of NATO offer to the EU, and does the EU truly need their involvement to ensure a robust security framework?
• How should existing EU Security and Defence Partnerships be enhanced to go beyond “statements of intent”?
• To what extent can shared vulnerabilities and a growing sense of uncertainty override value-based differences to create a unified front between the EU and its non-EU NATO partners?
• Can the coalitions of the willing in security and defence undermine the institutional integration of the European Union (even if it is not a community competence)?

By addressing these questions and comparing the security positions of the UK, Türkiye, Norway, and Canada, the discussion aims to shed light on the prospects for a more unified and inclusive European security architecture.

Meet our speakers and chair

Ian Bond (@cerianbond) is the deputy director of the Centre for European Reform and a former British diplomat with 28 years of service. His senior roles included political counsellor at the British Embassy in Washington, British Ambassador to Latvia, and deputy head of delegation to the OSCE in Vienna. His earlier postings included Moscow and NATO HQ, alongside positions in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office focused on the former Soviet Union, EU common foreign and security policy, and UK defence policy.

Aaron McKeil is Academic Director on the MSc International Strategy and Diplomacy programme at LSE Ideas. He is a Canadian citizen and conducted his PhD studies at the London School of Economics. His research focuses on international order theory, the concept of international disorder, and the limits of cosmopolitan global order alternatives. Aaron’s work examines the sources of international disorder and the means by which states order war. His monograph Cosmopolitan Imaginaries and International Disorder is open access with the University of Michigan Press.

Pernille Rieker is Director of the ARENA Centre for European Studies at the University of Oslo. She is also a Research Professor at the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs (NUPI), where she leads the RE-ENGAGE project on the EU’s promotion of democracy and stability in its neighbouring regions amid rising geopolitical tensions. Her research focuses on European integration and European foreign and security policy, including French and Nordic perspectives, and examines how strategic choices evolve within shifting European and geopolitical environments.

İlke Toygür is the Director of the Global Policy Centre and a Professor of Practice in European Politics at IE University, Madrid. In addition, she is a non-resident senior associate at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in Washington DC and serves as an elected board member of the Trans European Policy Studies Association (TEPSA) in Brussels. Her main areas of expertise include European integration, elections and democracy in Western Europe, European geopolitics, and transatlantic relations.

Yaprak Gürsoy (@ygursoy) is Professor of European Politics and Chair in Contemporary Turkish Studies in the European Institute at LSE.

Attendees are warmly invited to attend the event reception, which will follow the event.

More about this event

The event is supported by the European University of Social Sciences (CIVICA).

Contemporary Turkish Studies focuses on the politics and economy of Türkiye and its relations with the rest of Europe. The programme aims to promote a deeper understanding of contemporary Türkiye through interdisciplinary and critical research, teaching and related public activities.

The LSE European Institute is a world-leading centre for the study of Europe in its global context. With eight master’s degrees and a doctoral programme, a vibrant research community, and a world-leading public events programme, our work spans Political Economy, Politics & Policy, Culture & Society, and Migration.

CIVICA unites ten leading European higher education and research institutions in the social sciences, humanities, business management and public policy.

Hashtag for this event: #LSETürkiye

Any questions?

You can contact us at ei.turkish.studies@lse.ac.uk.

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