ERBIL () - European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen proposed Wednesday the creation of a "European Security Council"that would bring together European Union member states and non-EU partners, including Britain and Ukraine, as part of a broader effort to reshape the continent's security architecture in the face of Russia.
The proposal comes as Europe faces what officials describe as a campaign of "multi-domain attacks"waged by Moscow to undermine support for Kyiv, amid growing uncertainty over Washington's role within NATO.
Delivering her annual State of the Union address, von der Leyen said the idea of a dedicated security format had been under discussion for some time. "We have long discussed a format that brings together leaders and focuses on the security of our continent, with the participation of partners such as Canada, Norway, Ukraine, the United Kingdom and others,"she said.
She said the need for such a body had grown more pressing. "This has become more urgent now, given the nature and scale of the risks. That is why we will put forward our ideas to make a European Security Council a reality,"von der Leyen said.
The Commission president did not offer details on how the proposed council would operate or what authority it would hold. Proposals for a European security council of this kind have circulated for years without being formally adopted.
EU Defense Commissioner Andrius Kubilius said the "essential details of the new defense architecture"would be outlined in an upcoming security strategy document. Norway, for its part, said it welcomed EU efforts to involve non-member states in security discussions.
Von der Leyen also said she intends to establish an "emergency security protocol"for the EU, which would allow any member state to call for urgent consultations within the bloc in the event of a crisis.
"We must not be under any illusions about what is happening here: the multi-domain threats facing Europe have moved closer to direct threats and further from indirect methods,"she said.
She added: "Europe needs its own playbook for confronting multi-domain threats. We urgently need consensus on how to respond to specific incidents that fall below the threshold of armed aggression but clearly threaten our national security."
Officials said the mechanism would resemble Article 4 of the NATO treaty, which allows alliance members to request consultations if they believe their security is under threat.
Von der Leyen pledged that the bloc would increase its support for Ukraine as Russia intensifies its bombardment ahead of winter.
"We will provide our strongest support ever for Ukraine during the hardest winter of the war,"she said, adding: "We will deliver humanitarian assistance alongside our partners and strengthen Ukraine's supplies of electricity and heating."
