FEATURE | 7 Nov 2025
Investing in peace
The role of dialogue and conflict mediation in ensuring Europe’s security
Funding for non-military interventions is at an all-time low. While it is important to prepare for our defence, we must also invest in peace.
On Tuesday 4 November, the Berghof Foundation co-hosted a high-level roundtable at the European Parliament, titled “Investing in peace: The role of dialogue and conflict mediation in ensuring Europe’s security” with the European Institute of Peace, CMI – Martti Ahtisaari Peace Foundation and Barry Andrews MEP.
The roundtable made the case for investing in peacemaking in the European Union’s Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) 2028-34, which will be negotiated between the European Parliament, European Commission and Council of the EU for the next two years.
In her opening remarks, our Executive Director, Chris Coulter, highlighted that in order to prevent violent conflict, address it as it happens and sustain peace, we need to address the root causes of conflict. However, funding for non-military interventions is at an all-time low. While it is important to prepare for our defence, we must also invest in peace as the morally right, strategically sound and economically responsible choice: “Doing so protects communities, reduces the cost of violence and creates real security for the future.”
Throughout the discussion, speakers Barry Andrews MEP (Renew Europe, Ireland), Hanna Klinge (Deputy CEO, CMI) and Andrew Sherriff (Associate Director of Institutional Relations and Partnerships, ECDPM), as well as moderator Eamon Gilmore (Senior Advisor, EIP) brought up practical examples of their work in peacemaking, and highlighted a few key messages about European investment in peace:
Peacemaking is cost-effective and sustainable. Military spending can be extremely costly, with a single fighter jet in the range of 70-110 million euros. Peace investment, on the other hand, is less expensive: a widely cited study by the World Bank states that for every dollar spent in conflict prevention 16 dollars can be saved in conflict costs: Investing in peacemaking is not just a moral imperative, but also a smart economic decision.
Dialogue and mediation take time and resources but deliver real results. Peace processes require formal and informal networks, a clear understanding of local contexts and agendas, resources and human powers. They also do not happen overnight: speakers highlighted how the Irish and Colombian peace processes went on for more than a decade. But peace is worth the wait, and the investment.
The new MFF will need to balance defence spending with peace and development priorities. Military investment is very costly and cannot guarantee European security alone. It will need to be accompanied by investment in diplomacy, mediation and conflict prevention that tackle root causes and support peacebuilders.
This is a crucial moment for the EU to reaffirm its role as a leader in supporting sustainable peace around the world. As other global powers are investing less and less in sustainable peace Europe can and should step up to fill the gaps. This will strengthen the perception of EU’s external action worldwide and contribute to European security without compromising the EU’s values.
The roundtable also saw interventions from Hannah Neumann MEP (The Greens, Germany, and member of Berghof’s Advisory Council), Michal Szczerba MEP (EPP, Poland), Sebastian Tynkkynen MEP (ECR, Finland) and Sonya Reines-Djivanides (Executive Director, EPLO), who provided a wide range of perspectives on Europe’s global role and on investing in peacemaking in the next MFF.
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