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A top EU official has shot down the idea of creating a separate European army after recent calls by some European and Ukrainian leaders.

Some shit you should know before you dig in: Over the last two weeks, there have been calls from some EU and Ukrainian leaders for the creation of a unified European army. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky proposed forming a European force based on Ukraine’s one-million-strong army, citing its battlefield experience against Russia as a key asset. European Commissioner for Defense and Space Andrius Kubilius backed the idea of a 100,000-strong standing EU military, arguing that fragmented national forces, which he described as “bonsai armies,” lack the scale and coordination needed to deter threats. He also called for the establishment of a European Security Council to streamline defense decisions. Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski offered a more moderate proposal: a “European legion,” initially a brigade-sized unit that could include soldiers from EU and candidate countries, and would be designed to respond to lower-level regional threats. This push has come as some EU leaders have voiced concerns about the validity of long-term US security commitments in the region.

What’s going on now: In a notable development, EU policy chief Kaja Kallas rejected the idea of creating a separate European army, stating that it would be both unrealistic and counterproductive. Speaking in Brussels ahead of the EU Foreign Affairs Council meeting, Kallas responded directly to the growing proposals for a joint European force.

Kallas said, “Every European country has its own army, and the armies of 23 EU member states are also part of NATO’s structures. So I cannot imagine that the countries would create a separate European army.” She added that building parallel military frameworks would blur command hierarchies and increase the risk of operational failures in crises.

Her stance is backed by NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, who has also pushed back against the idea of a standalone European army. Rutte warned that such an initiative would “make things more complicated,” adding that it would result in “a lot of duplication.”