Epilogue: European Security and Defence in the Shadow of Brexit

This piece provides an epilogue to the Forum on European security following the UK EU Referendum. The EU has been a centrepiece in Britain’s foreign policy. The piece argues that Brexit presents the prospect of a major rethink in the aims, ambitions and conduct of British diplomacy and defence. From the perspective of third parties – and most especially for the EU and its member states – the reaction to the prospect of Brexit has been no less clear and the impact on European security no less certain. The piece highlights how contributors to this Forum all share the assessment of an uncertain future whether discussing bilateral relationships, the impact on the EU and NATO or the political economy of European defence. This Forum illustrates that it will be a European security and defence future of considerable uncertainty. A central issue to be resolved will be whether the EU and the UK are able to build a strategic partnership that encompasses issues of foreign policy, security and defence. The UK will also need to recalibrate its key bilateral relationships in Europe and with the United States. This creates an ambitious agenda for practitioners alike.