Luxembourg residents remain the European Union’s strongest supporters of closer defence and security cooperation, according to the latest Eurobarometer survey, which also points to exceptionally high levels of EU identification in the Grand Duchy.
The Standard Eurobarometer 104 (Autumn 2025), published this week, finds that 90% of respondents in Luxembourg believe the country has benefited from EU membership, compared with 74% across the EU27. A record 91% of residents say they feel they are EU citizens, the highest level recorded in the bloc.
The European Commission said the results point to a clear call for “a stronger and more assertive European Union” in a challenging geopolitical environment.
Security first
Support for a common EU defence and security policy is markedly higher in Luxembourg than elsewhere. Nearly nine in ten respondents in the Grand Duchy favour closer defence cooperation, compared with 79% at EU level, reflecting heightened security concerns linked to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Luxembourg’s divergence is not simply attitudinal. As a small, open economy with a large cross-border workforce and a financial sector deeply exposed to global markets, the country is structurally more sensitive to geopolitical shocks. Closer EU coordination on defence, trade and economic security is therefore often seen less as an abstract political project than as a practical safeguard.
The findings also mark a longer-term shift in public opinion. Support for closer defence cooperation and economic autonomy now sits near the upper end of historical Eurobarometer readings, suggesting that security concerns triggered by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine have hardened into more durable expectations of EU action, rather than a temporary reaction to crisis.
Eurobarometer findings are routinely used by the European Commission to gauge public backing for policy direction, even if they do not translate mechanically into legislative proposals.
From opinion to policy
Across the Union, the survey also shows broad backing for a more autonomous EU. More than four in five respondents believe the EU should strengthen its economic independence and diversify its trade relations, while two thirds view the Union as a source of stability.
The war in Ukraine remains the most important issue facing the EU for both Luxembourg residents and citizens across the bloc, cited by 26% of respondents. Support for the EU’s response to the conflict remains high, including welcoming refugees, providing financial and humanitarian aid, and maintaining economic sanctions against Russia.
The survey also highlights a distinctly Luxembourgish set of priorities, with housing emerging as the top area residents want the EU to fund — a sharper focus than elsewhere in the bloc, where defence and security rank higher.
The Standard Eurobarometer 104 was conducted between 9 October and 5 November 2025 through face-to-face interviews with 26,445 EU citizens, including 504 respondents in Luxembourg.