The European Union launched a “new era in defense cooperation” on Monday, France 24 reports, with 23 of the EU’s member nations agreeing to “a program of joint military investment and project development.” 

Ian Lesser, Brussels-based vice president for foreign policy at The German Marshall Fund of the United States, emails Global Briefing that while the move is part of a long history of efforts to establish a coordinated defense capability outside NATO, it is unlikely to replace it as the focal point of security on the continent.