European Commission President Von der Leyen used her annual State of the Union to signal the EU will accelerate bolstering security and defence capabilities and economic resilience. She said the Commission will recalibrate trade relations, reinforce industrial capacity and broaden external partnerships on energy and critical raw materials to enhance the bloc’s capacity to act.

2026-09-17

European Commission President Von der Leyen used her annual State of the Union to signal the EU will accelerate bolstering security and defence capabilities and economic resilience. She said the Commission will recalibrate trade relations, reinforce industrial capacity and broaden external partnerships on energy and critical raw materials to enhance the bloc’s capacity to act.