The term space weather is used for the solar driven variability in particle and electromagnetic conditions of the near-Earth space that may harm the performance of ground-based and space-borne technology. The European Union (EU) and the European Space Agency (ESA) have started a common programme called the Global Monitoring for Environment and Security (GMES). Many of the GMES operational services will rely on technology prone to space weather phenomena. For long-term environmental monitoring this is not a problem, but for applications of risk management in emergency situations the impact of space weather should be considered and evaluated. In this paper, we discuss how ESA's previous activity together with European national initiatives in the space weather area can be used to support GMES and how EU could participate in this work in its Framework Programmes and within the European Research Area (ERA).