European Union in February 2026: the most important developments in security
In February 2026, the European Union's security news centered on defense industry plans and threats from drones and sabotage. The most covered story was the future of the FCAS fighter jet project. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz questioned it over rising costs and delays and suggested Germany might consider buying more Eurofighters or American F-35 jets. Airbus and Merz floated a two-fighter option, and French President Emmanuel Macron defended the project. Separately, the European Parliament pushed for a European preference in the EU's military mobility plan.
The bloc announced a new strategy to protect itself from malicious drones, with specific countermeasures and closer cooperation among member states, and reinforced its drone wall along the eastern border with Russia and Belarus. The EU was detecting an average of 150 drug-smuggling drones a day at its external borders. Officials believed Russian spy spacecraft had intercepted key European satellites, and European-made components continued to be found in Russian kamikaze drones used in Ukraine.
EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said the bloc aims to cap the size of the Russian army. The EU's diplomatic service proposed training Ukrainian troops inside Ukraine. Suspects were detained over alleged illegal exports to Russia in breach of EU sanctions, and Belgian police raided offices of the European Commission and a Belgian sovereign wealth fund in a fraud investigation. The EU's aviation safety agency urged airlines to avoid Iranian airspace until the end of March.
by WorldBrief & Maksim Micheliov | AI-generated summary
Click a day in the chart above for that day's brief.