Written by: Annelies Sarens
Edited by: Alex Marchan
Supervised by: Cansu Macit Karaduman

As stated by the European Environment Agency (EEA) in 2020, our environment is disastrous and immediate action is required. In an environment where individuals have to flee uninhabitable areas and conflicts arise over key natural resources, the question raises how the EU intends to prepare the military to enable a green transition and how European defence policies adapted the militaries for the challenges caused by climate change.

To answer this question, I first analyse the current challenges for Europe’s armed forces and how the European armies are part of the climate change problem due to their carbon footprint. Afterwards, I start with analysing the Current EU Defence Policy by having a closer look at the 2020 Climate Change and Defence Roadmap, The Concept for An In- tegrated Approach to Climate Change and Security, and the 2022 Strategic Compass for Security and Defence. Subsequently, I exam- ine the Joint Communication shared by the EU Commission. I will end my paper with a conclusion on the recent European progress.