The European Commission held an Implementation Dialogue on Research Security on 10 November 2026 in Brussels, bringing research and innovation stakeholders together to discuss how research security measures are being applied and where further EU-level support is needed. The Commission’s Directorate-General for Research and Innovation reported on the event on 11 November 2026.
What happened
According to the Commission’s event page, the dialogue ran from 10:00 to 12:00 CET on Tuesday 10 November 2026 at The EGG, Rue Bara 175, in Brussels, in English. Its stated purpose was to share practical experiences and challenges in implementing research security measures, discuss emerging practices, and identify where further EU-level support and coordination may be needed. The Commission’s news item says the discussion was chaired by Commissioner Ekaterina Zaharieva, responsible for Startups, Research and Innovation, and that stakeholders from across the European research and innovation ecosystem took part. It does not name individual participants or institutions.
What was discussed
The programme was organised around two themes: progress and challenges in implementing research security measures, and strengthening EU-level support and coordination. The Commission says the dialogue also considered how research security can be integrated into the European research ecosystem while protecting academic freedom, institutional autonomy and trusted international partnerships. The news item points to risks such as undesired technology transfer, malign influence and misuse of research results, and states that research still depends on international cooperation.
The EU framework behind it
The Commission describes the dialogue as grounded in the European Economic Security Strategy (2023) and the Council Recommendation on enhancing research security, adopted in May 2024, and says it supports Member States and the research and innovation sector in implementing research security frameworks. It also presents the event as part of its new approach to implementation and simplification, in which high-level Implementation Dialogues are used to identify challenges and opportunities on the ground. For background on the concept, see CASRAI’s dictionary entry on research security.
Outcomes and next steps
Neither the Commission’s news item nor the event page publishes conclusions, a summary of the discussion or specific next steps, and neither announces new guidance, funding or institutions. Any follow-up from the dialogue has therefore not been stated publicly in those documents.
What it means for universities and research offices
This is an editorial reading, not a Commission statement. The dialogue signals that the Commission is gathering implementation feedback from the sector on the 2024 Council Recommendation rather than introducing new binding requirements, and it explicitly frames research security alongside academic freedom and institutional autonomy. Research offices that are building or reviewing their own processes can use the occasion to check how their approach to partner due diligence and international collaboration maps to the Recommendation. CASRAI has earlier coverage of the EU Research Security Monitor, of the planned EU Centre of Expertise on research security, and a guide to research security and sensitive technology screening in Horizon Europe.
Sources
- European Commission, news item on the Implementation Dialogue, 11 November 2026 (checked 2026-11-14)
- European Commission, Implementation dialogue on research security, 10 November 2026 (checked 2026-11-14)
- Council Recommendation on enhancing research security, OJ C/2024/3510 (linked from the Commission news item)
- European Economic Security Strategy, JOIN(2023) 20 (linked from the Commission news item)
