STRASBOURG — The European Union needs a NATO-like mechanism to coordinate responses to drone incidents, sabotage and cyberattacks, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Wednesday. Her proposal is aimed at threats that fall below open armed aggression but still test national security.

Von der Leyen called for what she described as a European counter-hybrid playbook. The Associated Press reported that she wants member states to reach a common understanding of how to respond when an incident is serious, ambiguous and potentially connected to hostile state activity.

The proposal follows a series of security incidents across Europe. AP reported that officials in Germany, Denmark and Poland had accused Russia of involvement in drone incursions, sabotage, arson, surveillance of defence facilities and a plan involving a drone carrying explosives. The allegations are not all identical, and responsibility for individual incidents remains a matter for investigators and governments.

The European Commission president said the mechanism could work in a way similar to Article 4 of NATO’s founding treaty, which allows threatened members to convene emergency consultations. It would not be the same as Article 5, NATO’s collective-defence clause, and it would not automatically create a military response.

Von der Leyen also said the commission would set out ideas for a European Security Council involving partners including Britain, Canada, Norway and Ukraine. The details, legal basis and decision-making process are not yet settled. For now, the announcement is a political signal that Europe’s security debate is expanding beyond conventional attacks to the persistent, deniable pressure of the grey zone.

*Reporting note: this article is based on the source record listed above and is current as of 16 September 2026. Figures, operational claims and casualty counts may change as authorities update their accounts.*