International Procurement Cooperation: Insights from the Brussels Field Trip

The postgraduate master’s programme International Procurement Cooperation from Zentrum für Wissenschaftliche Weiterbildung an der Helmut-Schmidt-Universität organised a 3 day field trip to Brussels to discuss the tips, tops, pitfalls and tricks of international military procurement cooperation, hosted by the Hanse Office. Day 3, on May 6, 2026, focused on the role of the military in ensuring Europe’s operational readiness, the legal and practical aspects of joint procurement, and perspectives from the Member States and international cooperation. The day concluded with a panel of experts from various nations discussing the challenges and opportunities of international armaments cooperation.

Representing both COMMIT and NNCC, Ms. Inge Weyers was proud to contribute to the discussion, looking to the future of procurement cooperation. Envisioning a future of closer cooperation between member states and industry, she discussed the innovative procurement programmes in trial by The Netherlands and NNCC, in which operation need driven challenges are used for experimentation, requirement harmonisation and even selection of solutions.