The review will look at defence spending and planning across EU member states.  

The European Defence Agency (EDA) has begun work on a wide-ranging review of EU member states’ defence projects, a 17 September EDA announcement has revealed.  

With the report due next year, work on the review, known as the Coordinated Annual Review on Defence (CARD), involves consultations with EU countries to assess their defence goals, plans, and projects. 

This is the fourth iteration of the CARD initiative, which began in 2017 as a tool to support European defence via “analysis of the EU defence landscape” and “recommendations for collaborative opportunities in capability development and acquisition”, the EDA has previously stated.  

Specifically, the review is designed to highlight trends in defence spending and planning, as well as identify opportunities for collaboration in defence initiatives. The aim is to inform decision-making on defence at both national and EU levels, the EDA said. 

Belgium was the first country to be consulted for this latest review, and the EDA said it has analysed the country’s plans and priorities for defence.  

The next consultation will be with Ireland, with each remaining member state to be consulted over the coming months.  

Findings from the completed consultations will then be compiled in May 2026, with final recommendations submitted in the CARD report to the EDA Steering Board in November 2026.  

“Political recommendations will serve as a reference for current and future defence initiatives and inform decisions on joint investment priorities”, the EDA said.  

These investment priorities include Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) projects, PESCO being a legal framework to facilitate joint capability development that launched 11 new projects in June.