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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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    01September 2004
    EU enlargement and armaments. Defence industries and markets of the Visegrad countries
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    Since the end of the Cold War, the armaments sector in the Visegrad countries has gone through an important downsizing process. Shrinking home markets and the disruption of the Warsaw Pact cooperation mechanisms have put defence industries in the region under enormous pressure.

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    01August 2004
    EU Security and Defence Policy: the first five years (1999-2004)
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    What are the ambitions of the Union in security and defence matters? What has been accomplished in the last five years? What are the different sensitivities of the 25 member states regarding the future of European defence? How should relations be developed with NATO and the United States? The reader will find here the most exhaustive critical assessment possible of the assets and achievements of the Union during the course of the first five years of ESDP (1999-2004).

  • 02July 2004
    Kosovo: what prospects for final status?

    The EUISS Balkans Task Force met in Paris on 2 July, 2004 to discuss the domestic constraints and possibilities in Serbia and Kosovo, and evaluate the state of play in EU policy towards the region.

  • 01July 2004
    A new impetus for ESDP
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    Among the clouds of abstention, apathy and doubts about the European integration project, the area of security and defence has seen indisputable progress in the last couple of years. The year 2003 witnessed a European Security Strategy document was endorsed last December. All of this would have been unthinkable just five years ago. Yet, the capabilities aspect of ESDP is still lagging behind.

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    01July 2004
    Protecting the European homeland — the CBR dimension
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    The Sarin attacks carried out by the Japanese cult Aum Shinrikyo in Matsumoto and Tokyo highlighted the threat posed by non-state actors equipped with non-conventional weapons. Although the number of casualties was limited, the attack signalled a cause for concern.

  • 14June 2004
    L'armement terrestre doit s'organiser
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    A partir d'aujourd'hui, les entreprises d'armement terrestre et aéroterrestre vont se réunir à Paris lors du salon international Eurosatory. Côté européen, l'ambiance sera sans doute mitigée. La situation reste difficile en particulier pour les producteurs de chars et de véhicules blindés, qui forment le noyau dur de l'industrie d'armement terrestre.

  • 14May 2004
    CFSP and ESDP after enlargement

    This conference, organised jointly with the Institute of International Relations, Prague, took place soon after accession of the Czech Republic to the EU. The Prague office of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation contributed to the organisation of the event, and the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs hosted the participants.

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    01May 2004
    European defence: a proposal for a White Paper
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    Europe is at peace but the world is not. Following the shock of the terrorist attacks in New York and Washington, the Institute decided, two years ago, to convene an independent task force in order to address the issue of future European capabilities.

  • 05April 2004
    Russia: quo vadis?

    The aim of the seminar was to discuss with Russian experts and EU officials the state of affairs in Russia after the elections, Russian views on European and international developments.

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    01April 2004
    Crisis management in sub-Saharan Africa - the role of the European Union
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    The increasing number and complexity of crisis situations in Africa and the declining interest of the international community in the region in the aftermath of the Cold War has led many African states and organisations to take a more proactive stance in their attempts to find solutions to their own problems.

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