Choosing Peace in Europe: Building the Next Peace and Security Architecture

Europe is facing its most profound security crisis in decades. The war in Ukraine has not only transformed the continent's strategic landscape but has also weakened trust between states, challenged the foundations of the European security order, and exposed the limits of existing multilateral institutions. While diplomatic efforts remain focused on managing the immediate consequences of war, far less attention is being devoted to a fundamental question: How can we build the next peace and security architecture in Europe? 

As Chair of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe in 2026, Switzerland has placed dialogue, confidence-building and cooperative security at the centre of its priorities. Building on the discussions launched during Geneva Peace Forum Meets Vienna and hosted by the Geneva Centre for Security Policy, the high-level discussion will examine the political choices that governments, international organizations and security institutions must make today to create the conditions for a more stable, inclusive and resilient European security order. It will explore also the concrete building blocks of a renewed security architecture, and how to manage distrust, how to balance deterrence and dialogue and what role the OSCE can endorse in this context.