The European Union wants to build deeper defence links with Australia amid global instability.

The economic bloc’s top official put the idea to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in Rome yesterday, and said it would match EU defence partnerships with other nations.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen raised the idea when she met the prime minister after the inaugural mass for Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican.

She said it could add to the defence ties the EU – an economic bloc of 25 nations and 449 million people – currently enjoys with Japan and South Korea.

Europe has been rethinking its defence strategies since the election of US President Donald Trump who has said the US might abandon its commitments to defending Europe if it were attacked.

Von der Leyen, speaking ahead of her private meeting with Albanese, said the global security situation had deteriorated over the past months.

“The geopolitical tensions have massively increased. The good thing is, Australia and Europe are reliable partners. We are predictable. We share the same values.

“So, we can offer to each other stability and we are very grateful for that.

“And this is the reason also that we do not only see you as a trading partner, but we see you as a strategic partner. And we would very much like to broaden this strategic partnership.”

“For example, we have signed security and defence agreements with South Korea and with Japan, soon with the UK.

“We would be very pleased if we could develop such a security and defence partnership too, just to broaden the strategic partnership.”

Albanese gave a cautious reaction to the plan, but said the federal government was open to a defence partnership.

“We said that we were certainly interested in any further engagement of support, but it’s very early stages at this point,” he said.

Albanese also met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Rome and promised continued Australian aid against Russia, including the delivery of Abrams tanks.