Rearming Europe: Spending, Autonomy, and the Transatlantic Alliance
Virtual Briefing Series
Thursday, July 17th, 2025 | 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM ET
The EU’s Readiness 2030 plan marks a significant shift in European defense, with €800 billion in planned spending driven by the war in Ukraine and growing doubts about U.S. security guarantees. As the bloc moves to strengthen its military capabilities and reduce reliance on external powers, key questions emerge: Could shared threats finally unify national defense strategies? Will common borrowing transform how Europe finances its security? And how might a more robust European defense industry reshape relations with Washington?
Join us on Thursday, July 17th, from 12:00 to 1:00 PM ET for a discussion with Dr. Rob de Wijk, founder of The Hague Centre for Strategic Studies (HCSS) and Professor of International Relations and Security at the Institute of Security and Global Affairs at Leiden University; and Sander Tordoir, Chief Economist at the Centre for European Reform. This conversation will provide key insights into European defense space and transatlantic security.
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SPEAKERS:
Dr. Rob de Wijk
Rob de Wijk is the founder of The Hague Centre for Strategic Studies (HCSS) and Professor of International Relations and Security at the Institute of Security and Global Affairs at Leiden University. He studied Contemporary History and International Relations at Groningen University, and wrote his PhD dissertation on NATO’s ‘Flexibility in Response’ strategy at the Political Science Department of Leiden University. Prof. De Wijk started his career in 1977 as a freelance journalist and later became head of the Defense Concepts Department of the Dutch Ministry of Defense, head of the Security Studies at the Clingendael Institute, and Professor of International Relations at the Royal Netherlands Military Academy.
Sander Tordoir
Sander Tordoir is Chief Economist at the Centre for European Reform. Sander works on eurozone monetary and fiscal policy, the institutional architecture of EMU, European integration as well as Germany’s role in the EU.
Prior to joining the CER, Sander worked as an advisor to the ECB Representative at the International Monetary Fund, covering the IMF’s surveillance of euro area policies and sovereign debt issues. Before his posting in Washington, he was an economist in the ECB’s EU Institutions and Fora Division, where he focused on the EU’s policy response to the Covid-19 pandemic, economic and fiscal governance, Banking Union, ESM reform and the ECB’s relations with other EU institutions. Sander was also a seconded expert to the German Federal Finance Ministry and a consultant at the World Bank.
His policy research has been cited in media outlets such as the Financial Times, The Economist, and The New Statesman.
Sander studied at Amsterdam University College and Columbia University, where he was a Fulbright scholar.
THIS SESSION IS OPEN TO EVERYONE AROUND THE WORLD
Image creator: Christian Lue on Unsplash
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