Munich, 14 February 2026 (dpa/MIA) — The European Union's mutual defence clause must be brought to life, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Saturday at the Munich Security Conference.

"I believe the time has come to bring Europe's mutual defence clause to life," she argued. "Mutual defence is not optional for the EU - it is an obligation within our own treaty: Article 42(7)."

The commitment of "one for all and all for one" only carries weight "if it is built on trust and capability," she added.

The comments came after German Chancellor Friedrich Merz highlighted Article 42 in his opening speech at the security conference on Friday, insisting the EU must "spell out" the meaning of the clause.

The article states that in the event of an attack on one member state, all others have an "obligation of aid and assistance by all the means in their power."

It has only been activated once so far, by France following the 2015 terrorist attacks in Paris.

Many EU members are also part of NATO, which has its own collective defence clause in Article 5.

More broadly, von der Leyen outlined the need for a new "European security strategy" to set out how the bloc's "entire policy toolbox" can be employed to protect the EU's interests.

This could take the form of "trade, finance, standards, data, critical infrastructures, tech platforms and information," she said.

The aim is to "ensure that Europe can defend its own territory, economy, democracy and way of life," she argued. "Because this is ultimately the true meaning of independence."

Von der Leyen was speaking on a panel alongside British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and further discussed the topic of the United Kingdom's ties with the EU.

"Europe and in particular the UK should come closer together – on security, on economy or on defending our democracies," the commission president said. "Ten years on from Brexit – our futures are as bound as ever."

"The EU, the UK – in fact all of Europe – we are in this together," she added. "And we will always stick together."