As the European security architecture enters a period of disruptive and structural change, the German Marshall Fund of the United States (GMF) is launching a major new initiative European Defense Roadmap: A Transatlantic Path to Responsibility Sharing, focused on developing a concrete, actionable roadmap for European defense to enter a new era of transatlantic responsibility sharing. Led by Dr. @ClaudMajor , GMF’s Senior Vice President for Transatlantic Security, this initiative builds directly on the policy recommendations of GMF’s bipartisan Transatlantic Task Force report, Rebalancing Transatlantic Relations — A Roadmap for 2030, released on June 24, 2025. The old burden-sharing debate, long measured in GDP percentages and defense budgets, is no longer sufficient. Transatlantic trust has been strained, and the strategic gap is widening. What is needed is a strategic contribution framework that reframes the conversation in terms Washington can act on and Brussels can deliver: not just how much Europe spends, but what Europe can do—reliably and at scale—within EU, NATO, and coalition frameworks. That is the core premise of GMF’s European Defense Roadmap. An effort to help translate responsibility‑sharing into an actionable roadmap for policymakers on both sides of the Atlantic. Building on decades of GMF security and defense expertise, it will deliver a structured blueprint for how Europe can assume primary responsibility for its own defense while preserving alliance cohesion and sustaining US engagement where it matters most. Through high-level workshops, scenario sessions, and data-driven research across GMF’s transatlantic office network—from Washington D.C. and Brussels to Berlin, Paris, London, Warsaw, Bucharest and Ankara—GMF will convene the full spectrum of key transatlantic stakeholders: governments, EU and NATO institutions, defense and tech industries, and leading experts to shape what comes next. US and European allies share a fundamental interest in ensuring that this roadmap is operationalized in an orderly and constructive manner that limits capability and leadership gaps, and maintains credible deterrence. In the months ahead, GMF will provide the trusted platforms, rigorous analysis and structured timeline needed to define the parameters of a more cohesive, capable European security framework. 🔗 Learn more about the European Defense Roadmap below: