UK and EU to explore renewed talks on defence cooperation | Defence policy

Britain and the EU are exploring the possibility of new talks on closer defense cooperation, with Keir Starmer stressing on Friday that the UK wants to “go further” in its relationship with Brussels.

EU trade commissioner Maroš Šefčovič will hold talks in London next week, with trade, energy and fisheries on the agenda. But diplomatic sources said Britain was keen to discuss restarting defense talks as soon as possible.

Talks for the UK to join the EU’s €150bn (£130bn) Security Action for Europe (Secure) defense fund collapsed in November 2025 amid claims the EU had set too high a price for entry into the programme.

France has denied it was responsible for the breakdown of talks, but diplomatic sources say tensions remain between Paris and other member states, particularly Germany, and sources say they want Britain to join Secure “as soon as possible”.

A European source said France wanted to make Britain’s participation in Safe conditional on London joining a second defense program agreed by EU leaders in December, which provided a 90 billion euro loan to Ukraine securitized against Russian frozen assets held in Belgium. Germany does not want any preconditions.

Sources in Brussels admitted that failure to agree terms in November was “a shame” for the EU and that both sides had already announced the possibility of “increasing cooperation” through Safe at a summit hosted by Keir Starmer and Ursula von der Leyen in May last year.

However, it appears there is greater appetite across the board for a deal for the UK to join the future Safe scheme, especially after Donald Trump’s threats to seize Greenland and criticism of NATO.

Speaking in Beijing on Friday, Starmer did not mention defense but stressed that the UK would like to see a closer relationship on trade beyond areas already agreed.

Possible areas for future extra deals are chemicals and automobiles, where tariffs will apply from next year on non-electric vehicles. The UK is also discussing details of a youth mobility plan; Starmer wants a cap on the numbers and fixed duration for free travel.

“I think we shouldn’t just follow what we agreed on before. I think the relationship with the EU and every summit needs to be repeated,” he said.

“We should try to go further. And I think there are other areas where we need to see whether we can make further progress in the single market. That will depend on our discussions and what we think are in our national interest.”

“But the point I’m making here is that I think we can go further. And the point to look at is the single market rather than the customs union, which doesn’t really serve our purpose anymore.”

Starmer faces pressure from within his own party to forge closer ties with the EU, especially since relations with the US have spiraled out of control under Trump.

Stella Creasy, Labor MP and Chair of the European Labor Movement, said: “It is now increasingly recognized that our future lies in restoring a strong working relationship, not only in the field of defence, but also in the field of national and economic security. This means everything must be on the table in talks with EU countries.”

Šefčovič will meet Nick Thomas-Symonds on Monday for the annual meeting of the EU-UK Association Council, which was created to oversee the post-Brexit EU-UK deal. Defense is not on the agenda right now; It appears the UK is prioritizing progress on food and drink.

Šefčovič and EU economic commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis will also meet with Rachel Reeves to discuss geoeconomics, and she will also meet with trade minister Peter Kyle.

There may be further opportunities for the EU and Britain to discuss defense at a political summit in Washington on Wednesday, when Marco Rubio will meet to discuss critical minerals and the Foreign Office will send a minister.

On the possibility of further cooperation in defense, a source close to the government said: “The UK government was ready to pay a certain amount but there was a big gap between the parties.

“Europe needs the UK, so they thought these could be revisited and fixed. “And there was a political obstacle.

“The UK government is open to a second try, but clearly if the EU comes back with the same kind of proposal it will be the same response. It appeared that it was largely the French who were pushing this illogical position.”

It is understood that the EU requested the UK to contribute approximately 2 billion euros to the fund, but the British found a contribution of “hundreds of millions” more appropriate.

The fund consists of money that the European Commission raises from credit markets and is then lent over 45 years to member states, which can buy everything from ammunition to drones and missiles.

The money is then made available through low-cost loans to help member states procure military equipment from within the EU and from outside the EU, including other countries such as the United Kingdom and Canada.

The aim of the fund was to enable the EU to rapidly build defense capacity; this has taken on extra urgency due to Trump’s lack of support.

The UK is not eligible to apply for the Secured loan, but if it joins the scheme under third country rules, UK companies could tender for more purchase contracts to supply arms to the EU, boosting the British defense industry.