Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what progress has been made with his EU counterparts on further military cooperation between the UK and Common Security and Defence Policy exercises.

The Security and Defence Partnership agreed with the European Union on 19 May 2025 is an example of this Government delivering on our manifesto commitments to strengthen European security, support growth and reinforce NATO.

We will continue to prioritise engagement and cooperation on the issues that are most important in helping to safeguard European security and prosperity – all in support of this government’s NATO First defence policy as set out in the Security and Defence Review.

The Security and Defence Partnership outlines that the UK will consider its participation in EU CSDP civilian and military crisis management activity. This cooperation can take many forms and officials are in discussions with the EU to explore potential options.