EU Council inaugurates new science diplomacy framework to boost global leadership and secure cooperation

The Council of the European Union has adopted a recommendation setting out a new EU framework for science diplomacy, intended to strengthen the Union’s position as a global leader in science and technology and to use scientific cooperation to advance foreign policy objectives.

Nicodemos Damianou, Cyprus’s Deputy Minister for Research, Innovation and Digital Policy, said that in a period of geopolitical fragmentation and rapid technological change, science diplomacy has become a strategic imperative, relying on the ‘universal language of science’ and on open yet secure collaboration to support an autonomous EU that remains open to the world.

The recommendation frames science as a global public good and argues that scientific cooperation can build trust and facilitate dialogue with third countries. It calls for open and secure international cooperation in research and innovation, building on existing tools such as the association of third countries to Horizon Europe and initiatives including ‘Choose Europe for Science’.

It also seeks to maximise the impact of science diplomacy in promoting and safeguarding EU values, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and respect for human rights, while recognising its role in supporting competitiveness.

The text stresses the need to balance scientific aims with foreign and security policy interests, including assessing risks and opportunities in strategic areas such as AI and quantum technology, alongside maintaining research security and ensuring alignment with the EU’s external action.

The Council commits to stronger partnerships, including with the global south to support research capacity and address shared global challenges, and calls for the creation of a Mediterranean science diplomacy centre. It encourages member states to improve coordination across government and stakeholders, strengthen links between diplomatic services and research organisations and universities (including European Universities alliances), and integrate science diplomacy into education and training.

It also asks the Commission to enhance monitoring of major global research and innovation developments, such as the increased use of AI in science, and assess their implications.

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