On 12 October 2026, the College of Europe in Natolin will have the honour to host the European Commissioner for Defence and Space, Mr Andrius KUBILIUS. Commissioner KUBILIUS will deliver the keynote speech on the occasion of the inauguration of the European Security and Strategy Study Track. The keynote speech will be followed by a Q&A session with the Commissioner.
About the speaker:
Mr Andrius KUBILIUS has had a long and distinguished career in Lithuanian and European politics. He has served as European Commissioner for Defence and Space since 2024 and was a Member of the European Parliament in 2019. Earlier in his career, he was Leader of the Opposition from 2005 to 2006 and again from 2012 to 2016, and served twice as Prime Minister of Lithuania, first from 1999 to 2000 and later from 2008 to 2012. He was Deputy Speaker of the Seimas from 2006 to 2008 and First Deputy Speaker of the Seimas from 1996 to 1999. A prominent figure in Lithuanian politics, he served as Chairman of the Homeland Union party from 2003 to 2015 and was a Member of the Lithuanian Parliament (Seimas) for nearly three decades, from 1992 to 2019.
Source: Andrius Kubilius - European Commission
About the European Security and Strategy Study Track:
The European Security and Strategy Study Track started at the College of Europe in Natolin with its first courses in September 2026. It is to train future analysts, strategists, policymakers, and decisionmakers, who will shape Europe’s security environment and its response to current and emerging threats.
The European Union, as a peace project, continuously endeavours to accomplish its mission to promote security and stability, to protect its citizens, defend its interests and the values it stands for. It operates however in a security environment with proliferating threats. It is characterised by increased Russian aggressiveness, but also hybrid attacks, terrorism and violent extremism, international organised crime groups, or networks of cyber criminals.
The establishment of the European Security and Strategy Study Track at Natolin was motivated by the conviction that the success of this mission relies on the availability of relevant knowledge, skills, and talent. In areas where the EU can and shall act, it can only do so through its engaged and educated citizens, whether it be facilitating greater collaboration in the European defence industry, improving overall security readiness of European countries, or enabling partnerships. Properly trained and committed teams of specialists will help integrate strategic thinking into Europe’s efforts to carve out a fully coherent response to meet the gravity of the current moment.
If Europe needs the human capital to provide a strategically enduring response to the security challenges it currently faces and those it will need to address in the future, the uniquely appropriate geography of Natolin and its experience in areas of defence, security, and relations with Europe’s neighbourhoods position it admirably well to respond to this need.