Exploring Europe's Capability Requirements for 2035 and Beyond

The European Defence Agency (EDA) has been working closely with its participating Member States (pMS) to produce the Capability Development Plan (CDP) since 2008. The CDP is a comprehensive and strategic planning tool that provides an overview of future strategic military capability needs of Member States' armed forces. Its aim is to address security and defence challenges in the short, medium and long term, while providing recommendations to Member States' militaries on the capabilities they may need to react to potential security developments. This in turn provides important inputs and support to the national defence planning processes of EDA pMS. To help deliver the latest iteration of the CDP, EDA commissioned RAND Europe, with support from the Hague Centre for Strategic Studies (HCSS), to conduct a study to update and revise the long-term strand (Strand B) considering possible future capability requirements out to 2035+. Though the threats faced in this time horizon may be highly uncertain, the complex, resource-intensive and time-consuming task of developing new military capabilities means that decisions made today and in the near term will have a direct influence on the armed forces of the 2030s and beyond.