“In the context of an uncertain global system”
On 18 December 2025, the three main institutions of the European Union; The Council, the Commission and the Parliament issued a joint statement on the priorities of the Union’s strategy for 2025, in light of the turbulent situation in the region and the world and the challenges facing the Union in the current difficult situation. The joint statement outlined priorities that focused on strengthening the Union’s competitiveness, European defense and security issues and a comprehensive vision for border management and migration. The statement reflects Europe’s concerns about the new situation, such as the threats and challenges facing the entire European continent as a result of the prolonged war between Russia and Ukraine and uncertainty in the peace process between the two countries elections within the Union, or at the domestic level of the states.
EU Priority Plan for 2026
According to the nature of EU rules, the annual priority strategy must be determined at the end of each year, jointly by the EU institutions after necessary discussions, and then through a joint statement signed and published by the European Commission, European Council and Parliament. According to the statement, three main issues have been emphasized as the priorities of the union for the year 2026, the issues are as follows.
First: – the security and defense sector: After the outbreak of the Russian-Ukrainian war and the prolongation of the war, the EU is one of the most important issues of security and defense priorities. In this context, the adopted plan recognizes ongoing efforts to achieve a breakthrough in cooperation and investment mobilization to increase infrastructure resilience and ensure defense readiness by 2030.
Second:- European competitiveness: The plan calls for redoubling efforts to address the challenges impeding Europe’s competitiveness, from ensuring an ambitious governance and regulatory agenda to opening up access to capital, reducing energy prices, increasing investment, supporting high-growth start-ups, strengthening the single market, and building a true energy union before 2030 would clearly decline globally due to slowing productivity, demographic challenges, rising energy costs, and increased global competition. Former European Central Bank President Mario Draghi has released a report commissioned by the European Commission in September 2024, identifying the obstacles to growth in Europe and offering practical recommendations on how to overcome the crisis in the EU.
Third:- immigration and border management: Election campaigns across Europe and media discourse have shown that migration and border security issues have become central to public debate, forcing mainstream parties to take a more limited approach to addressing fears raised by right-wing discourse as fuel and political cards.
“Challenges to the EU Strategic Plan 2026”
Its European priority plan for 2026 revolves around three key areas, all aimed at strengthening “European strategic self-reliance”. This seems to be primarily due to the chaos in the international system, particularly the disintegration of the Western Alliance since President Donald Trump returned to power a year ago and even before that the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war. Despite the aspirations set out in the plan, Europe faces several challenges, most notably:
First, geopolitical challenges; the continuing Russian threat and escalating hybrid warfare represent the most immediate challenge facing Europe this year. The war in Ukraine remains a major security challenge, especially Russia’s hybrid tactics, which combine conventional maneuvers, cyber-attacks, disinformation, irregular forces and political pressure. These tactics are likely to intensify in 2026, putting constant pressure on European defense planning and preparedness.
Second, Internal Challenges; The EU faces fundamental challenges related to unstable strategic coherence and political consensus, as national priorities differ significantly across Europe. While Eastern European countries focus on Russia, others focus on the Mediterranean issue or migration. These differences complicate the emergence of a unified strategic vision.
Third, Structural Challenges; this challenge is related to capacity and implementation gaps within the EU Common Policy. At the defense level, for example, the European defense industrial base remains fragmented, hindering the ability to rapidly produce the required quantities and types of equipment.
