EU plans new intelligence ‘cell’ amid rising global threats

BRUSSELS — Ursula von der Leyen’s European Commission is laying the groundwork for a new intelligence coordination cell in Brussels.

The initiative is still at a “very early, conceptual stage”, but the plan reflects a wider effort to bolster the EU executive’s security and intelligence functions, Commission spokespeople Balazs Ujvari and Paula Pinho told reporters.

The new body would build on existing expertise, complementing the work of the Commission’s Security Directorate and coordinating closely with the European External Action Service. The cell will be small in scale and will focus on coordination rather than duplication, the spokespeople said.

When asked whether the move was linked to the EU’s efforts to counter hybrid threats and foreign interference, Ujvari said the idea stemmed from a broader understanding of the changing “geopolitical and geoeconomic environment” rather than any single trigger.

No name, staffing numbers, or launch date have been decided yet. The spokespersons added that discussions are ongoing and that the legal and organizational framework will be clarified as the concept develops.

Not everyone was a fan of the idea. “The half-crazy von der Leyen is now verging to full blown madness setting up her own Brussels-grown CIA,” former Greek finance minister Yanis Varoufakis posted on X.