EU Foreign Policy in Action in 2026

Against a backdrop of continued conflict, growing geopolitical competition and mounting global challenges, the EU has continued to translate its foreign policy objectives into concrete actions. 

In 2026, the EU has:

Adopted the most far-reaching sanctions against Russia, further reducing its ability to finance its war against Ukraine.

Signed four new Security and Defence Partnerships, expanding cooperation with key partners around the world.

Launched a new EU Mission in Armenia to strengthen the country's democratic resilience and crisis response capabilities and decided to open a new delegation in Oman to strengthen ties with the Gulf region.

Added Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to its terrorist list and expanded the Iran sanctions regime to address threats to freedom of navigation.

Russia's shadow fleet enables the Kremlin to evade sanctions and continue generating revenues to finance its war against Ukraine. To counter this, the EU has sanctioned

• 632 vessels and
• more than 80 enablers

involved in circumventing the oil price cap and transporting Russian oil, military equipment, and stolen Ukrainian grain.

In October 2025, the High Representative appointed the first EEAS Shadow Fleet Coordinator to strengthen cooperation among Member States and international partners. Together with coordinated sanctions, maritime enforcement—including flag-verification boardings of EU-sanctioned vessels—and the work of EUNAVFOR MED IRINI, these efforts are exposing fraudulent vessels, disrupting sanctions circumvention networks, and reducing Russia's ability to finance its war. Operation Atalanta in the Indian Ocean can also board suspected Russian shadow tankers.

In 2026, the EU signed four new Security and Defence Partnerships with India, Iceland, Australia and Ghana, bringing the total number of Security and Defence Partnerships to 12. 

The additions allowed for the EU to further strengthen security and defence related cooperation in the Indo-Pacific, while signing a Security and Defence Partnership with Ghana as the first African partner country.   

These Partnerships strengthen joint efforts on shared security challenges, such as countering cyber, hybrid threats and disinformation,  maritime security and crisis management. 

Countries around the world increasingly turn to the EU as a reliable and predictable partner for peace, security and defence matters.

In April 2026, the EU Partnership Mission in Armenia (EUPM Armenia) was established to strengthen the country's democratic resilience and crisis response capabilities. The mission provides strategic advice, capacity building and practical support to help Armenia address challenges such as cyber-attacks, foreign information manipulation and interfrence (FIMI), and illicit financial flows. 

With the establishment of EUPM Armenia, the total number of EU civilian and military CSDP missions and operations comes to 22, further strengthening the EU's role as a global security provider and partner.

With tensions escalating in the Strait of Hormuz and its global ramifications, the EU stepped up its efforts to help safeguard freedom of navigation and secure one of the world's most strategic maritime corridors. 

Operation ASPIDES has already protected over 2390 merchant vessels against Houthi attacks, ensuring their safe transit, and provided close protection to more than 720 ships since 2024. The EU has also reinforced through the deployment of additional naval assets, including mine hunters based in Djibouti.

Operation Atalanta continues to provide maritime security in the Western Indian Ocean and the Red Sea, safeguarding international trade and supporting regional stability. With a surge in piracy activity, the mission makes a key contribution to protecting commercial shipping and humanitarian deliveries. Since its launch, it has safeguarded more than 2,500 World Food Programme vessels and transferred 177 suspected pirates to the competent authorities. 

Operation IRINI in the Mediterranean received a new focus on the protection of critical undersea infrastructure and countering the shadow fleet (June 2026), in addition to its existing tasks concerning the enforcement UN arms embargo on Libya and capacity-building for the Libyan Coast Guard and Navy.

During her visit to Djibouti in July 2026, the High Representative/Vice President Kaja Kallas signed a new Status of Forces Agreement, reinforcing the EU's maritime partnership with the country and ensuring continued support for EU naval operations protecting freedom of navigation in the Red Sea.

EU diplomacy works through the engagement of the HRVP Kaja Kallas and via the network of 145 EU Delegations worldwide.

In July, the EU further expanded its diplomatic footprint with the signing of the agreement to establish a new EU Delegation in Muscat, Oman. The new Delegation adds to a global diplomatic network that continues to grow, keeping the EU connected and engaged with partners worldwide.

Multilateral cooperation remains at the heart of the EU's foreign policy. In a speech to the annual UN Security Council session on EU-UN cooperation on 13 April 2026, the High Representative/Vice-President Kaja Kalls reaffirmed the EU's commitment to an effective multilateral system based on the UN Charter and international law.

As part of her mandate, the HRVP represents the European Union in major international fora, including the United Nations, the G7 and G20, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), as well as engagements with the African Union, ASEAN, CELAC and other regional organisations.

On 11 May, the EU, together with Canada and Ukraine, co-hosted a High-level Meeting in support of the International Coalition for the Return of Ukrainian Children, strengthening global efforts to secure the safe return, reintegration and rehabilitation of more than 20 500 Ukrainian children unlawfully deported or forcibly transferred by Russia since its full-scale war of aggression against Ukraine. 

The meeting reinforced international cooperation to protect Ukrainian children, uphold their fundamental rights and ensure that Russia's legal obligation to return them remains a priority in any peace negotiations, in line with international humanitarian law and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. It also advanced work across six priority areas: tracing and data verification, scale up and organised returns, diplomatic track, reintegration and rehabilitation, accountability, and sanctions coordination.

Through Election Observation Missions (EOM), the EU continued to support credible, inclusive and transparent elections, helping strengthen democratic institutions and public trust across partner countries. 

So far in 2026 the EU observed the elections in Bangladesh, Colombia and Peru and deployed two more EOMs in Sao Tome e Principe and Zambia. 

Since 2000, the EU deployed 188 EOMs in 68 countries. It also deployed 135 Election Expert Missions (EEMs), covering in total 84 countries around the world.