European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen used her State of the Union speech in Strasbourg to call for a NATO Article 4-style EU emergency mechanism to respond to hybrid threats below the threshold of armed attack. The proposed counter-hybrid tool would let any member state trigger consultations so all EU governments could coordinate a response to drone incursions, sabotage, cyberattacks and similar security incidents.
Von der Leyen framed the plan as an “Emergency Security Protocol” for cases that threaten national security without amounting to open aggression. The proposal comes amid rising concern in Europe over hybrid pressure campaigns, including incidents widely linked in reporting to Russia. She also paired the idea with a separate push for a European Security Council that could involve partners such as Britain, Canada, Norway and Ukraine.
The mechanism remains a political proposal rather than an adopted EU legal instrument, and no details were set out on the legal basis, timing or voting rules. That leaves the initiative open-ended for now, even as the Commission seeks a more structured European response to cross-border security threats.