Kallas has been in intense competition with the Commission over these plans, but an EU official said the reason for the cancellation was pressure from some capitals.
“Some member states felt this was not the right path to pursue at this moment,” said the official. “After some discussion with ministers, we have decided not to proceed with the initiative, we are looking at new ways of engaging with member states.”
The presentation had been meant to take place in Brussels at the Bibliothèque Solvay on Monday morning, with some 150 people from EU institutions, think tanks, academia and NATO expected to attend.
The names of group members were kept under wraps by Kallas’ office, but three diplomats said the group was expected to be chaired by former NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen and to include former defense ministers, like Estonia’s Jüri Luik, who also served as NATO ambassador, and France’s Florence Parly, a former minister of the armed forces.
Germany was expected to have a representative, as were other countries from outside the EU such as the U.K. and Ukraine, other diplomats said. Rasmussen was then expected to be tasked with writing a report on the outcome of the group’s work.
The EEAS did not confirm any of the names.