Five EU powers plan tighter defense co-op

French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius delivers a speech during a news conference after a meeting with the group known as 'Weimar Plus' (foreign and defence ministers of France, Germany, Spain, Italy and Poland) on European Defence in Paris, Nov 15, 2012. [Photo/Agencies]

Defense and foreign ministers from five large European Union countries plan to tighten defense cooperation amid strained national budgets and an increasing US focus on Asia.

With US-led NATO long the main military bloc on the continent, ministers from France, Germany, Italy, Poland and Spain said in a joint statement after Thursday's meeting that "Europeans must take their share of responsibilities to meet the challenges to come and ensure Europe's security in the most energetic way".

Britain, one of the EU's biggest military powers, was notably unrepresented, but French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said it would be "welcome" to sign on to the agreed text.

The ministers discussed violence in Syria, Islamic extremists who control northeast Mali, and EU success in fighting piracy of Somalia's coast.