FLEET SERIES Lilybell Evergreen(June 2026) Securing everything, connecting nothing? The climate–security–democracy nexus in European governance FLEET( F resh L ook at E astern E uropean T rends) is a FES­initiated network of young, open-minded security experts from across the OSCE space. The group has met regular­ly since 2015 to develop joint policy proposals on how to resume cooperation and stabilise European security, including Islands of Cooperation and Responsible Europe. From the outset it has sought to find common ground and develop a joint approach following intensive, contro ­versial debates. After Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukra­ine in 2022, members of FLEET continued debating diffe ­rent perspectives, but it became more difficult to develop a unified position or a new joint vision. We thus continue the series of FLEET publications with a collection of essays by various members, which shed light on different components of European security. Key messages → European institutions are pouring resources into hard security while climate and democracy compete for what remains. This is a trap, not a strategy. → Comprehensive security is well established in theory. In practice, siloed mandates, fragmented strategies and zero-sum budgets mean that it’s rarely realised. → This is not just a policy failure, but a structural one. Institutions cannot close the gap between comprehen­sive security as concept and as reality without changing how they work, not only what they fund. → Trust is a strategic asset. Institutions that act with legiti­macy, accountability and clarity of purpose are more resilient than those that simply spend more on defence, and far harder to undermine through disinformation and polarisation. → Breaking the security trap demands institutional imagi­nation: the willingness to find new connections across challenges, bring in new partners and push beyond incremental reform. Securing everything, connecting nothing? The climate–security–democracy nexus in European governance 1