The European Union's (EU's) security and defence partnerships (SDP) are non-legally binding documents that provide ‘mutually beneficial frameworks’ to promote defence and security cooperation between like-minded states. The idea of an Australia-EU defence pact was floated in May 2025. This paper outlines what is being proposed, strategic considerations and next steps.

An Australia-EU SDP would not constitute a conventional alliance, as there would be no defence deployment obligations for either party. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese argued that the partnership would ‘provide a framework’ for cooperation in the defence, cyber and counter-terrorism domains. It would also likely increase the frequency of joint military exercises and promote closer defence industry ties, seeking to counter threats to the ‘rules-based global order’, particularly in the Indo-Pacific region.

As at September 2025, eight countries have signed SDPs with the EU: Canada, Japan, South Korea, the UK, Albania, Moldova, North Macedonia and Norway. Given the recent decisions by Canada, the UK and Japan to sign similar deals, Australia is likely to follow suit. Ultimately, however, the appropriateness of an SDP with the EU will depend on Australia’s strategic considerations and its desire for increased security and defence alignment with its European counterparts.