EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas announced the new group just last week to advise on Europe's defence needs, but the initiative was scrapped following strong opposition from member states.
At an informal meeting of defence ministers in Ireland last week, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas announced a new advisory body bringing together political and military leaders to help design a new approach to European defence.
"The aim is to have some of the brightest minds on security and defence come together and really provide out-of-the-box solutions on how we can be faster in fulfilling these gaps and how we can be more effective," Kallas said during the press conference.
Only days later, the initiative was quietly shelved. Invitees to the launch event, a fireside chat with Kallas, due to take place on Monday in a cosy venue in Brussels, received word of the cancellation on Sunday afternoon.
The abrupt decision came after several member states opposed the move, viewing it as the wrong path to pursue, despite the group having been intended solely as an advisory body rather than one empowered to make decisions on behalf of member states.
