European Officials to Prepare Blueprint for EU Mutual Assistance and Defense Clause

Cyprus is particularly keen to firm up the measures after a drone struck a British air base located on the island in March amid the ​Iran conflict.

Cyprus President Nikos Christodoulides addresses the media on the day of a summit of the European Union and regional partners' leaders in Nicosia, Cyprus, on April 24, 2026. Yves Herman /Reuters

European Union leaders have tasked their officials with fleshing out how a rarely used Brussels treaty on mutual assistance would work in the event a member is the victim of military aggression.

Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides, whose country currently holds the rotating EU Council presidency, said on April 24 that leaders made the agreement at a summit in Cyprus the night before.