E5 Defence Ministers' Statement: 26 October 2026

Our countries share the assessment that Russia represents the most acute and long-term threat to Euro-Atlantic security and stability. Russia’s ongoing war of aggression against Ukraine, on the one hand, and its continued violations of Allied airspace, acts of sabotage and growing use of multi-domain hybrid attacks, on the other, do not undermine our unity, solidarity and cohesion. On the contrary, they strengthen our determination to pursue the efforts already undertaken to safeguard the integrity and security of Allied territory, through a 360-degree approach that takes into account threats from all strategic directions.

We, the Defence Ministers of France, Germany, Italy, Poland and the United Kingdom (the Group of Five/E5), share a deep conviction: Europe must assume greater responsibility for its own security. We are determined to work in close coordination with the United States and all Allies in order to implement this concrete ambition. The United States is and will remain an indispensable Ally, and continued United States engagement in European security is essential to a strong and credible NATO.

This greater responsibility must begin with the empowerment of European Allies within NATO.

With the aim of building a stronger Europe within a stronger NATO, we are already taking concrete measures to implement the commitments taken in The Hague, emphasized in Ankara, and to meet agreed capability targets.

We will assume greater political and military leadership within the Alliance, modernising forces and capabilities, including through closer defence-industrial cooperation based on common and standardised requirements,. We reaffirm our commitment to further strengthening NATO’s collective defence in order to rapidly adapt to current and future challenges, including with a more proactive deterrence and defence posture.