European Defense Roadmap

As the European security architecture enters a period of disruptive and structural change, this initiative will deliver an actionable blueprint for Europe to assume primary responsibility for its own defense while preserving alliance cohesion and US engagement where it matters most.

This initiative builds directly on the policy recommendations of GMF’s bipartisan Transatlantic Task Force report, Rebalancing Transatlantic Relations — A Roadmap for 2030, released on June 24, 2025.

Through high-level workshops, scenario sessions, and data-driven research across its transatlantic office network from Washington, DC, and Brussels to Berlin, Paris, London, Warsaw, Bucharest, and Ankara, GMF will convene the full spectrum of key transatlantic stakeholders—governments, EU and NATO institutions, defense and tech industries, and leading experts—to shape what comes next.

The old burden-sharing debate, long measured in GDP percentages and defense budgets, is no longer sufficient. What is needed is a strategic contribution framework that reframes the conversation in terms Washington can act on and Brussels can deliver: not just how much Europe spends, but what Europe can do—reliably and at scale—within EU, NATO, and/or coalition frameworks. Europe will need clear planning, coordinated investments, and a shared pathway for collective defense and crisis management.

US and European allies have a shared interest in ensuring that the roadmap is operationalized in an orderly and constructive manner that limits capability and leadership gaps and maintains credible deterrence. This program will provide decision-makers with tailored analyses, opportunities for dialogue, and trusted platforms to define the parameters for better responsibility-sharing.