AROUND THE WORLD THIS WEEK

EUROPEAN UNION

Citing the abrupt exit of US-led forces in Afghanistan, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has called on the EU to develop its own military capabilities that could respond to global crises independently of Nato.

Von der Leyen, who delivered her state of the union speech this week, said the EU must develop the “political will” to develop and deploy forces in “an era of regional rivalries and major powers refocusing their attention towards each other”.

“What has held us back until now is not just a shortfall of capacity – it is the lack of political will. And if we develop this political will, there is a lot that we can do at EU level,” she said.