The last time Article 4 was invoked — a formal request to consult allies due to a security threat — was by Estonia last year after three Russian fighter jets violated the country’s airspace. No other capital has invoked it since.
Duplication drama
There are few details on von der Leyen’s ideas. Earlier European security council proposals — which the EU has rejected — include the idea of capitals delegating some defense decision-making powers to a smaller group of leaders in a crisis.
An Emergency Security Protocol, meanwhile, would allow one capital to convene all fellow EU members in a crisis “to coordinate a European response, to deter further escalation and to mitigate the impact,” von der Leyen said — almost identical to NATO’s Article 4 procedure.
In theory, a security council could help in “coordinating quick action” between the EU, NATO and other partners in a crisis that is “flexible across institutions,” said Giuseppe Spatafora, an analyst at the EU Institute for Security Studies. The emergency protocol, meanwhile, could protect non-NATO countries like Ireland, he said.
But the alliance insists it should take the lead on security. “NATO is the bedrock of our collective defence and we will continue to work closely with the EU in pursuit of our shared agenda,” said a NATO official speaking on behalf of the alliance.
Not all NATO allies are skeptical. On hybrid attacks, the “EU is better placed to put in place a mechanism to react, because it has more diverse tools than NATO,” said a second senior NATO diplomat.