Programme
ARES Group - The Armament Industry European Research Group
The Armament Industry European Research Group (ARES Group) was created in 2016 by The French Institute for International and Strategic Affairs (IRIS), who coordinates the Group. The aim of the Ares Group, a high-level network of security and defence specialists across Europe, is to provide a forum to the European armament community, bringing together top defence industrial policy specialists, to encourage fresh strategic thinking in the field, develop innovative policy proposals and conduct studies for public and private actors.
The club brings together experienced armament policy and defence industrial policy experts, working accross European universities and think tanks.
ARES Group’s activities:
• Publications:
– Comments: short-format opinion pieces
– Policy Papers: medium format notes
– Reports: long format studies
These publications are freely available on the Group’s website. Policy Papers and Reports are written jointly by two or more experts to provide a cross-eyes approach to one subject.
• Two annual seminars take place in Brussels and Paris supported by the material produced by the Group.
ARES Series
Publications
Notes / ARES Group - The Armament Industry European Research Group
13 October 2026
The EU and the Internal Defence Market: What Are the National Perspectives?
Senior Fellow, Elcano Royal Institute
Senior Research Fellow, Institute for Strategic Research (IRSEM)
Head of the Programme for European and Global Politics, Swedish Institute of International Affairs (UI), and Researcher, Swedish Defence Research Agency (FOI)
Research Fellow & Coordinator, Defence Hub, Hellenic Foundation for European & Foreign Policy (ELIAMEP)
Head of «Defence Security and Space» Program, Istituto Affari Internazionali (IAI)
Senior Fellow, Security and Defence Department, Centre for Eastern Studies (OSW)
Chief analyst, Think Tank Europa
Head of Division Foreign and Security Policy, Hanns Seidel Foundation
Director of the Institute of International Relations and Political Science, Vilnius University
Senior Research Fellow, Clingendael
Notes / ARES Group - The Armament Industry European Research Group
22 September 2026
Integration of the European Capability Process in Member States’ Administration : The Czech Case
Head of International Relations and European Politics Programme, Masaryk University, Czechia
Notes / ARES Group - The Armament Industry European Research Group
16 July 2026
Aligning Shields: Greece’s Integration Into the EU Capability Development Process
Head, EU Institutions & Policies Programme; Head of the ‘Ariane Condellis’ European Programme; Senior Research Fellow, Hellenic Foundation for European and Foreign Policy (ELIAMEP); Professor, Athens University of Economics & Business
Research Fellow, Defence Hub, Hellenic Foundation for European and Foreign Policy (ELIAMEP)
Policy Papers
Notes / ARES Group - The Armament Industry European Research Group
13 October 2026
The EU and the Internal Defence Market: What Are the National Perspectives?
Senior Fellow, Elcano Royal Institute
Senior Research Fellow, Institute for Strategic Research (IRSEM)
Head of the Programme for European and Global Politics, Swedish Institute of International Affairs (UI), and Researcher, Swedish Defence Research Agency (FOI)
Research Fellow & Coordinator, Defence Hub, Hellenic Foundation for European & Foreign Policy (ELIAMEP)
Head of «Defence Security and Space» Program, Istituto Affari Internazionali (IAI)
Senior Fellow, Security and Defence Department, Centre for Eastern Studies (OSW)
Chief analyst, Think Tank Europa
Head of Division Foreign and Security Policy, Hanns Seidel Foundation
Director of the Institute of International Relations and Political Science, Vilnius University
Senior Research Fellow, Clingendael
Notes / ARES Group - The Armament Industry European Research Group
3 June 2026
Security of Supply and Interdependency: A New Approach to Strategic Autonomy and Indispensability
Associate Researcher, Université Grenoble Alpes
Professor, Vrije Universiteit Brussel; Non-Resident Senior Fellow, Real Elcano Institute
Notes / ARES Group - The Armament Industry European Research Group
9 April 2026
Between Legacy and Emergence: The Spatial Integration of New Defence Companies in Europe’s Historical Defence Landscape
Shangri-La Dialogue Senior Fellow for Indo-Pacific Defence Policy, Economics and Industry, IISS
Research Fellow, Chair of Defence Economics, IHEDN
Holder of the Chair of Defence Economics, IHEDN
Research Fellow, Chair of Defence Economics, IHEDN
Research Assistant, Chair of Defence Economics, IHEDN
Notes / ARES Group - The Armament Industry European Research Group
26 January 2026
Building a European Geospatial Intelligence Capability: Mapping Initiatives, Identifying Gaps, and Outlining Strategic Options
ARES’s Scientific Advisor and Senior Defence Industry Expert
Notes / ARES Group - The Armament Industry European Research Group
8 July 2025
Investing in European Defence Industry: The Case for a Sovereign Defence Investment Fund
Director, The Jacques Delors Institute (Paris)
Notes / ARES Group - The Armament Industry European Research Group
17 June 2025
The Involvement of Third-Country Entities in EU Defence Industrial Policies and the “European Design Authority” Concept
Senior Research Fellow at IRIS, Head of the Europe, EU, NATO Programme on EU/NATO issues
Notes / ARES Group - The Armament Industry European Research Group
14 May 2025
Sovereignty by Design? Security of Supply in Defence in the European Union
Professor, CSDS, Vrije Universiteit Brussel; Non-Resident Fellow, Real Instituto Elcano
Notes / ARES Group - The Armament Industry European Research Group
8 April 2025
Three Trajectories for Defence Spending in the EU and Their Consequences for the European Industry and Capabilities
Associate Researcher, CESICE, Grenoble Alps
Senior Fellow, Security and Defence Department, OSW Centre for Eastern Studies
Senior Expert in European Security Policy
Notes / ARES Group - The Armament Industry European Research Group
4 December 2024
Integrated Arsenals? Mapping Defence Industrial Relations Between Europe and Ukraine
Non-Resident Fellow, Real Instituto Elcano and Professor, Centre for Security, Diplomacy and Strategy – VUB
Notes / ARES Group - The Armament Industry European Research Group
18 July 2023
Russia’s War Against Ukraine: A New Impetus for the Harmonisation of European Arms Export Policies? A Trilateral Perspective from France, Germany, and Sweden
Director of the Military Expenditure and Arms Production Programme, SIPRI
Deputy Head of Research Division, SWP
Scientific Adviser at IRIS, Head of the Defence, Strategy and Armaments Programme and ARES Group
Deputy Director, DGAP
Notes / ARES Group - The Armament Industry European Research Group
30 March 2023
EDIRPA/EDIP: Risks and Opportunities of Future Joint Procurement Incentives for the European Defence Market
Senior Research Fellow at IRIS, Head of the Defence and Security Industry Programme
Notes / ARES Group - The Armament Industry European Research Group
20 March 2023
Articulating ESG Criteria and the Financing of the EDTIB: A Prospective View
Ancien.ne chercheur.se à l'IRIS
Notes / ARES Group - The Armament Industry European Research Group
15 July 2020
The (R)evolution of Defence Innovation Models: Rationales and Consequences
Professor of Innovation
Professor of Strategic Management and Innovation Studies, Paris School of Business
Notes / ARES Group - The Armament Industry European Research Group
1 April 2022
EU Civil-Defence Synergies: Understanding the Challenges and Drivers of Change
Security and Defence Editor, EU Institute for Security Studies
Senior Expert, European Commission
Notes / ARES Group - The Armament Industry European Research Group
2 September 2021
What Scope for EU-US Defence Industrial Cooperation in the 2020s?
Security and Defence Editor, EU Institute for Security Studies (EUISS)
Scientific Adviser at IRIS, Head of the Defence, Strategy and Armaments Programme and ARES Group
Notes / ARES Group - The Armament Industry European Research Group
24 June 2021
The European Defence Fund and Space: Added Values and Priorities
Former Deputy Director General at European Commission and Member of the Air and Space Academy
Director of the Foundation for Strategic Research (FRS)
Notes / ARES Group - The Armament Industry European Research Group
19 January 2018
The Relationship Between Prime Bontractors and SMEs. How to Best Manage and Fund Cooperative Programmes
President, Eurodéfense France
Professor of Applied Economics, Complutense University of Madrid
Notes / ARES Group - The Armament Industry European Research Group
5 December 2016
Today’s Technological Innovations for Tomorrow’s Defence
French Senior Official, Senior Lecturer (Sciences Po Paris)
King’s College, London
Notes / ARES Group - The Armament Industry European Research Group
27 April 2016
A ‘Game Changer’? The EU’S Preparatory Action on Defence Research
Researcher, Institute for European Studies, Free University of Brussels
Associate Researcher in Economics, ENSTA Bretagne, France
Events
More
25 JUN 2026
Defence and Space: Europe’s Future, Italy’s Role
12 MAR 2026 > 13 MAR 2026
From the Baltic to the Arctic : How to Develop European Capabilities?
They lead the ARES network
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Scientific Adviser at IRIS, Head of the Defence, Strategy and Armaments Programme and ARES Group
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Senior Research Fellow at IRIS, Head of the Europe, EU, NATO Programme on EU/NATO issues
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Senior Research Fellow, IRIS
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Senior Research Fellow at IRIS, Head of the Europe, EU and NATO Programme on political developments in European countries
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Research Fellow, IRIS
Steering Board
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Jean-Pierre Maulny
Deputy Director of IRIS, president of ARES Steering Board
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Jean-Xavier Chabane
Director of European and NATO Affairs, GICAT
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Elvia Delpal
EU & NATO Political Affairs Manager, KNDS France
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Thierry Poignant
Group Director Strategic & International prospective, Thales
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Didier Gondallier de Tugny
VP EU/NATO and Bilateral Cooperation Strategy, MBDA
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Hilmar Linnenkamp
Advisor, SWP, Berlin
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Nick Witney
Senior Policy Fellow, ECFR, London
Scientific Advisors
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Renaud Bellais
Associate researcher, Université Grenoble Alpes
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Lucie Beraud-Sudreau
Shangri-La Dialogue Senior Fellow for Indo-Pacific Defence Policy, Economics and Industry, IISS
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Martin Chovančík
Assistant professor, Department of International Relations and European Studies, Masaryk University
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Daniel Fiott
Head, Defence and Statecraft Programme, Centre for Security, Diplomacy and Strategy, Brussels School of Governance; Assistant Professor, Vrije Universiteit Brussel; Non-Resident Fellow, Real Instituto Elcano
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Bastian Giegerich
Director-General and Chief Executive, IISS
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Justyna Gotkowska
Deputy Director, Centre for Eastern Studies – OSW
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Elena Lazarou
Director General of ELIAMEP
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Alessandro Marrone
Head of Defence, Security and Space Programme, Istituto Affari Internazionali (IAI)
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Sylvie Matelly
Director, Institut Jacques Delors
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Scientific Adviser at IRIS, Head of the Defence, Strategy and Armaments Programme and ARES Group
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Sandra Mezzadri
MSB consulting
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Christian Mölling
Senior Advisor, The European Policy Centre
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Jana Puglierin
Senior Policy Fellow, Head of, ECFR Berlin
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Ester Sabatino
Research Associate for Defence and Military Analysis, IISS Europe
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Senior Research Fellow at IRIS, Head of the Europe, EU, NATO Programme on EU/NATO issues
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Luigi Scazzieri
Senior Policy Analyst, EUISS
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Gaspard Schnitzler
Head of bilateral affairs Europe, Safran
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Margarita Šešelgytė
Director at the Institute of International Relations and Political Science, Vilnius University
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Senior Research Fellow at IRIS, Head of the Europe, EU and NATO Programme on political developments in European countries
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Trevor Taylor
Professorial Research Fellow, Defence, Industries and Society, RUSI
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Research Fellow, IRIS
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Auke Venema
Senior Research Fellow, Clingendael Institute
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Christine Nissen
Chief analyst, Think tank Europa