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Security and defence

The Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) is an integral part of EU foreign policy. Through its military operations and civilian missions, the EU has contributed to regional and global stability. Since it's inception, the CSDP has responded to a shifting regional security context. It has played a vital role in crisis management in the EU's near and wider neighbourhood but it is also an essential part of the EU's broader approach to the protection of Europe and capacity building.

Although the Lisbon Treaty consolidated the EU's crisis management apparatus, the EU Global Strategy has set a new level of ambition for EU defence. In addition to the CSDP playing an operational role in the EU's integrated approach to crises, the EU Global Strategy has stressed the need for the EU to become a more capable and effective defence actor. Initiatives such as the European Defence Fund, the coordinated annual defence review (CARD) and more coherent financing for EU operations and capacity building efforts are all aimed at supporting the EU's strategic autonomy and the European Defence Technological and Industrial Base. The EUISS continues to support the development of CSDP through outreach activities and expert publications.

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    01July 2007
    A European centre of excellence in tune with the world
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    The new EUISS Director, Álvaro de Vasconcelos, outlines his vision for the Institute and its role in shaping EU foreign policy in this edition of the Intitute's newsletter 'ISSues'. Other articles include missile defence and gender mainstreaming.

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    01July 2007
    ESDP Newsletter No. 4
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    At dawn on 23 June, after close to 36 hours of intensive talks, EU leaders adopted a mandate for a Reform Treaty. In the field of foreign and security policy, the text foresees the EU should have, as of 2009, a High Representative for foreign affairs and security policy. He will be supported by a European external action service. Another important innovation is the permanent structured co-operation in the field of defence.

  • 01July 2007
    The potential unintended consequences of missile defence in Europe
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    Missile defence in Europe is currently a hotly debated topic in international security. It has animated discussions and raised issues at multiple levels, including ramifications for international relations (e.g. between the US and Russia), intra-EU relations (e.g. concerning national positions), and institutional relations (e.g. the role of NATO).

  • 27June 2007
    Reviewing Conflict & Post-Conflict Management in Africa

    This seminar aimed at reviewing standard political and economical formula in implementing peace. As five ESDP operations have taken place in Africa, this seminar also aimed at identifying the international and local contexts in which the EU is developing its crisis management instruments.

  • 30May 2007
    Challenges in missile non-proliferation - multilateral approaches

    This conference, jointly organised with the German Presidency and the Council of the European Union, examined the challenges posed by missile proliferation and focused on the Hague Code of Conduct against Ballistic Missile Proliferation (HCoC).

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    01May 2007
    Gender mainstreaming in ESDP missions
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    In 2000 the United Nations Security Council passed Resolution 1325, Women, Peace and Security, which calls for ‘gender mainstreaming’. International organisations, governments and national militaries have become increasingly aware of the unintended gendered side-effects of peacekeeping operations, including incidents of prostitution, trafficking in women and the exploitation of local women and men in post-conflict societies.

  • 16March 2007
    GMES: the security dimension

    This seminar was organised with the support of the Council General Secretariat, the European Commission, and the EU Satellite Centre and sought to raise awareness of the security dimension of GMES and to obtain guidance for implementation.

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    01March 2007
    EU security and defence — Core documents 2006 — Volume VII
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    The civil war in Iraq, the nuclear issue in Iran, the war in Lebanon, the resurgence of the Taliban in Afghanistan, the Israeli-Palestinian deadlock, the energy, Darfur, the disintegration of Somalia, tensions between Georgia and Russia: all these events have increased instability in the EU’s neighborhood in 2006, both to the east and to the south.

  • 01March 2007
    Why EU strategy is relevant today
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    The European Union has considerably extended its sphere of activity and its strategic responsibilities since ESDP was launched in 1999. European mobilisation is no longer restricted to tackling crises in the Balkans. The Union is being increasingly called upon to intervene as a stabilising force in Africa, the Middle East and Asia. But why has there been such an expansion at the international level when, on the home front, the European institutional and political dynamic has been blocked for the past two years? And what are the prospects for the future?

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    01February 2007
    Enter the EU Battlegroups
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    This Chaillot Paper aims to give readers an overview of the EU Battlegroups and their prospective evolution. The study addresses four main questions: (i) the process leading to the creation of the EU Battlegroups; (ii) the main elements covered by the EU BG Concept; (iii) the principal challenges and prospects facing the EU Battlegroups; and (iv) how the EU Battlegroups are likely to evolve over the next few years.

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