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Starmer Urges Stronger European Role in NATO
(MENAFN) UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has called for Europe to take on a more prominent role within NATO, arguing that long-standing assumptions about global security, trade, and energy are no longer reliable in the current geopolitical environment.
Speaking at the European Political Community summit in Yerevan, Armenia, he said Europe must strengthen its collective approach across key strategic areas.
“There needs to be a stronger European element in NATO. I have no doubt about that. So across defense and security and trade and energy, all of which have been weaponized, we need a much stronger Europe coming together around these issues,” he said.
Starmer said Europe has lagged behind in addressing modern security challenges, pointing to decades of dependence on external partners and outdated assumptions about global stability. He argued that the continent must now take a leading role in reshaping its own defense and security architecture.
“It has to be Europe now that leads the way,” he said, adding that urgent action is required.
He also described the current global environment as increasingly unstable, referencing ongoing conflicts and their broader consequences. According to him, Europe is simultaneously dealing with multiple security crises, including the prolonged war in Ukraine and tensions involving Iran, both of which are having widespread effects.
“We are now facing a war on two fronts. We're going into the fifth year of the Ukraine war, and we've got the Iran conflict at the same time, and both of those are impacting all of us in a very material way,” he said.
He further warned that the consequences extend beyond economic disruption, pointing to hybrid threats such as cyberattacks and other indirect forms of aggression affecting European societies.
“The impact is not just economic, … there are proxy attacks ... on our streets ... by way of cyber-attacks. So, this is not something remote. It's very real.”
Starmer also acknowledged that some traditional alliances are under strain, suggesting that established international partnerships are not currently functioning at their optimal level.
“We cannot deny that some of the alliances that we have come to rely on are not in the place we would want them to be,” he added.
Speaking at the European Political Community summit in Yerevan, Armenia, he said Europe must strengthen its collective approach across key strategic areas.
“There needs to be a stronger European element in NATO. I have no doubt about that. So across defense and security and trade and energy, all of which have been weaponized, we need a much stronger Europe coming together around these issues,” he said.
Starmer said Europe has lagged behind in addressing modern security challenges, pointing to decades of dependence on external partners and outdated assumptions about global stability. He argued that the continent must now take a leading role in reshaping its own defense and security architecture.
“It has to be Europe now that leads the way,” he said, adding that urgent action is required.
He also described the current global environment as increasingly unstable, referencing ongoing conflicts and their broader consequences. According to him, Europe is simultaneously dealing with multiple security crises, including the prolonged war in Ukraine and tensions involving Iran, both of which are having widespread effects.
“We are now facing a war on two fronts. We're going into the fifth year of the Ukraine war, and we've got the Iran conflict at the same time, and both of those are impacting all of us in a very material way,” he said.
He further warned that the consequences extend beyond economic disruption, pointing to hybrid threats such as cyberattacks and other indirect forms of aggression affecting European societies.
“The impact is not just economic, … there are proxy attacks ... on our streets ... by way of cyber-attacks. So, this is not something remote. It's very real.”
Starmer also acknowledged that some traditional alliances are under strain, suggesting that established international partnerships are not currently functioning at their optimal level.
“We cannot deny that some of the alliances that we have come to rely on are not in the place we would want them to be,” he added.
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