Blink and you’ll have missed it. The 10th Anniversary of St Malo, the historic Anglo-French agreement promoting greater cooperation on European Defence passed with little more than an op-ed. But ten years is too important to let pass without comment and too significant not to be celebrated.  Traditionally, tin or aluminium is given on a  tenth wedding anniversary. Both are pliable metals;  flexible and durable – two characteristics which neatly describe European Defence. Flexible in the military sense with member states pushing towards more collaborative structures and shared platforms with EU members and with NATO. And durable politically: European member states still bear the the scars from fighting over the conflict in Iraq, and yet disagreements over Iraq has not prevented the EU carrying out some 20 ESDP missions since 2003.

In short, the 10th Anniversary of St Malo is a reality check for European aspirations on defence and security as well as a demonstration of the willingness of EU members to join forces to tackle the security challenges of today and tomorrow.

Given there doesn't seem to be much of an appetite here, in Paris or Brussels to think about ten years of European Defence we’ve decided to hold a half day conference on the subject. We have some of the best thinkers and practitioners from both sides of The Channel to discuss European Defence;  reflect on how far the EU has come, analyse current and future challenges, but most important of all,  think through some of the potential solutions to the challenges posed by  fragile states, terrorism, organised crime, piracy and the proliferation of WMD.

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