The power of the few: How clusters can strengthen European defence
fanny.pollet@i…
Fri, 02/20/2026 – 14:45
10 minutes
Europeans are adapting to a more threatening security landscape, marked by growing uncertainty about the durability and depth of US engagement in Europe. The blueprint is clear: more defence investment but also deeper cooperation between Member States on everything from the acquisition of military equipment to joint training and operations.
Organising effective cooperation among a large and diverse group of states, however, remains difficult. Fragmented national defence planning, diverging threat perceptions and competing industrial interests constrain collective action(1). The more ambitious the form of cooperation, the harder it is to agree on practical details. Ultimately these constraints mean that comprehensive, EU-wide solutions are often slow to emerge and limited in scope.
This Brief argues that small-group cooperation in the form of bilateral and minilateral defence clusters offers the most viable way forward. By bringing together countries with aligned threat perceptions, capabilities and political will, clusters allow for faster and deeper integration along both industrial and operational dimensions, while …read more
