Security Governance in the European Union and Transatlantic Relations

Security governance in the European Union and transatlantic relations encompasses the institutions, policies and cooperative mechanisms that underpin collective defence, crisis management and strategic coordination between Europe and North America. At its core stands NATO as the principal collective-defence alliance, complemented by the EU’s Common Foreign and Security Policy and its Common Security and Defence Policy. Over recent decades the EU has sought to strengthen its own capabilities, notably through the Strategic Compass and Permanent Structured Cooperation, while maintaining interoperability with US forces. Emerging challenges—from Russia’s assertive actions and hybrid warfare tactics to geostrategic competition with China, cyber threats and terrorism—have driven closer policy alignment, yet have also prompted debates on strategic autonomy and burden-sharing. Domestic political shifts, differing threat perceptions among member states and complex institutional frameworks require adaptive governance models that balance transatlantic solidarity with European diversification of defence partnerships. This evolving governance architecture has global significance, shaping responses to crises in Eastern Europe, the Indo-Pacific and in cyberspace, as well as influencing defence-industry cooperation, joint exercises and emerging technologies.

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Security Governance in the European Union and Transatlantic Relations publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in security governance in the european union and transatlantic relations across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Security governance: The system of institutions, norms and processes that direct collective security and defence efforts across states.

Strategic autonomy: The capacity of the EU to act independently in security and defence while remaining interoperable with allies.

Policy coherence: The alignment of policies and actions across different institutions and actors to achieve unified strategic objectives.

Differentiated integration: A mode of integration where subsets of EU member states pursue deeper cooperation in specific policy areas.

Collective defence: A principle whereby an attack against one ally is considered an attack against all, as enshrined in NATO’s founding treaty.

References

1. How Much of a New Agenda? International Structures, Agency, and Transatlantic Order. Politics and Governance (2022).
2. A Weakening Transatlantic Relationship? Redefining the EU–US Security and Defence Cooperation. Politics and Governance (2022).
3. Coherence at Last? Transatlantic Cooperation in Response to the Geostrategic Challenge of China. Politics and Governance (2022).