The European Union needs to prepare for a reduced US presence in Europe and must build its defence independence “very quickly, without delays and excuses,” and strengthen the European pillar of NATO, European Defence Commissioner Andrius Kubilius said in a speech at the European Defence Agency.

“We need to develop pan-European capabilities, not just national ones… as some gaps are so big that they need to be filled together,” he said. “To be clear, independence does not mean alone. Independence means together,” he added.

“Let’s build a European pillar of NATO. Together in the European Union, together in NATO, and together with Ukraine,” he said. He was thus responding to NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, who, speaking to the European Parliament’s Defence and Foreign Affairs Committee on Monday, warned Europe to stop dreaming about building a European pillar of NATO and to continue building relations with the US despite the Trump phenomenon.

The European Commissioner appealed to the European defence industry to invest in its productive potential without delay. “Capabilities, not profits, are important now and will be important in the years to come,” he said.

Andrius Kubilius also proposed the creation of a new European Security Council, an idea put forward in the late 2010s by Emmanuel Macron and Angela Merkel to strengthen political coordination in the defence sector.