Dates: April 13–May 8, 2026 (4 weeks)

European-Led Defense is a four-week resident course in Garmisch-Partenkirchen designed for security professionals seeking to strengthen Europe’s capacity to plan, fund, and sustain credible deterrence and defense. The course blends expert lectures and panels with small-group discussions and applied exercises, allowing participants to move beyond theory and focus on implementation. Each week builds progressively, enabling participants to determine which modules best align with their professional responsibilities and interests.

Applications are now open.
Apply for this course by Jan. 31, 2026 → Apply here

Learning Objectives:

• Week 1: Strategy and policy development
• Weeks 2–3: Capability development, industrial capacity and EU-NATO cooperation for burden sharing and resilience
• Week 4: Workshops and consultations to develop solutions aligned with participants’ organizational needs

Week 1 establishes a shared foundation in strategy, defense policy, and regional security analysis. Participants are introduced to core analytical frameworks used throughout the course to assess strategic environments, frame problem statements, and examine the institutional factors that shape defense decision-making. Through this module, participants will develop the ability to evaluate strategic risk, cost, and flexibility in decision-making under uncertainty, and demonstrate the ability to synthesize complex information and present coherent strategic arguments to senior audiences.

Week 2 is focused on translating policy into execution within the defense industrial base with a special focus on the European theater. Participants examine defense initiatives with emphasis on innovation ecosystems, supply chain resilience, and institutional coordination. By the end of the module, participants will strengthen professional skills to examine different levels of challenges, such as procurement and regulatory barriers, and develop policy options to address these challenges.

Week 3, conducted in collaboration with the Brussels-based European Security and Defence College and the Cyprus Security and Defence Academy, explores EU-NATO cooperation as a platform for effective burden-sharing and interoperability. Participants will further examine cooperation dynamics across EU member states, NATO allies, and partner nations, with attention to differing institutional roles, constraints, and strategic perspectives. Through this module, participants will be prepared to engage in building European-led security and demonstrate the ability to synthesize EU-NATO cooperation–related defense endeavors.

Week 4 focuses on implementation, emphasizing practical application in participants’ home nations and organizations. The module examines defense planning, acquisition, and institutional reform, including how defense industrial base constraints and reforms affect readiness, force development, and deterrence credibility. By the conclusion of this module, participants will be better prepared to link strategy, capability development, and industrial capacity to implementation and identify practical reform options that enhance strategic readiness.

The Marshall Center’s resident courses are designed to build strategic competencies through lectures, seminars, workshops, simulations, and individual consultations. By the end of each course, participants will:

• Understand core concepts of strategy and policy
• Apply those concepts to analyze the strategic environment
• Develop actionable plans using the DOTMLPF-P framework: doctrine, organization, training, materiel, leadership and education, personnel, facilities, and policy

The ideal candidate for this in-resident course is a midlevel security professional with the following characteristics:

• Eight to 15 years of experience working in security-related fields
• A general understanding of security and defense matters and related processes
• A professional or personal interest in strategy and policy development
• A need to apply strategy and policy skills to European-led deterrence, defense, and strengthening the European Industrial Base

The course is offered in English only. A minimum score of 80 on the English Comprehension Level (ECL) test, or an equivalent score on the ALCPT, NATO STANAG, TOEFL, CEFR, or university-level English courses, is required.

Have questions? Contact the Marshall Center info [at] marshallcenter.org (info[at]marshallcenter[dot]org).