Τhink nea initiative’s meeting with representatives of the German Ministry of Defense

Following an earlier visit to Berlin in June, the team of ELIAMEP’s initiative think nea – New Narratives of EU Integration met with representatives of the German Ministry of Defense (BMVg) for an online briefing on 7 July.

Prof. Ioannis Armakolas, Dr. Ana Krstinovska and Dr. Frauke Seebass presented the findings of the think nea Defense Report by Ana Krstinovska and Alessandro Marrone on the role of the Western Balkans for EU defense readiness and additional data from a recent policy brief focusing on defense industrial capacity.

The discussion focused on the role of the EU in facilitating a deeper integration of the Western Balkans in EU defense capabilities and overcoming obstacles for German and other European companies to invest. Our researchers emphasized that new EU programmes and efforts on joint defense offer vast opportunities for deeper integration and that the EU should be quick to act as other powers are already investing in existing and emerging capabilities.

You can find the defense thematic report here and the defense policy brief here.