The EU’s CFSP/CSDP in 2030: Towards an alternative vision of power?

Author(s): Cornelia-Adriana Baciu,Alexandra M. Friede / Language(s): English Issue: 3/2020

This article argues that the lack of an effective, coherent and progressive EU grand strategy that is able to streamline efforts and produce collective goods, both at home and in the world, is culpable for the EU’s gradual decline until 2030. The lack of European-wide strategic thinking creates the conditions for an existential crisis of the EU. The EU’s Common Foreign and Security Policy/ Common Security and Defence Policy is the most striking example: it fails to manage the EU27 expectations, build up sufficient military and civilian capabilities, deliver tangible results and, consequently, lacks credibility. This has repercussions for the EU’s level of ambition. Until 2030, more and more states drop out of EU initiatives and search for alternative fora to make their voices heard in international politics. The powerlessness of the EU also weakens its most important allies: the United States and NATO. This creates a power vacuum to be filled by more ambitious players, such as China or Russia, which seek to diffuse their view of global (dis)order. To avoid this future, we argue that the EU should (1) embrace an alternative vision of power, (2) strengthen the legitimacy of its internal and external policymaking and (3) engage strategically in global affairs on the basis of a firm commitment to NATO-EU cooperation.

The EU’s Challenge with the End of the Syrian War

Author(s): Patrycja Sasnal / Language(s): English

The war in Syria has entered its final stage, one in which diplomacy will dominate military action. The most likely scenario for the end to this conflict—the Syrian government’s victory—creates a set of political risks to the EU: legitimisation of the undemocratic regime in Syria, engagement in highly politicized reconstruction projects that do not contribute to the improvement in living standards of Syrians, and granting Russia political gains without it also accepting adequate responsibility for the fate of Syrian returnees.

The EU-NATO Cooperation: Perspectives for More Autonomous Europe?

Author(s): Margarita Mironova / Language(s): English Issue: 04 (14)/2018

The recent intensification of EU-NATO dialogue alongside with the major strategic and operational changes within the Common Security and Defence Policy have reopened discussions about the future European security architecture. What is the role of both organisations and what configuration of their relations would be optimal? Will the EU ambition for strategic autonomy make a positive contribution also to NATO or will it lead to further decoupling and fragmentation of the transatlantic bond? The article examines both the challenges and main achievements of EU-NATO relations with focus on the most promising areas of cooperation.

THE EUROPEAN SECURITY STRATEGY REVISED. THE ROMANIAN PERSPECTIVE

Author(s): Bogdan Lucian Aurescu / Language(s): English Issue: 43/2012

The Romanian debate concerning national interests within the EU is still prone to generalisation. The current security environment reveals major evolutions that the EU, as well as Member States, must take into account when formulating their strategic objectives. In this respect, a significant role must be assumed by the European Security Strategy which, in its turn, must be re-evaluated according to current realities and the conditions set forth by the adoption of the Lisbon Treaty.

THE EUROPEAN UNION – A GLOBAL ACTOR?

Author(s): Elemír Nečej / Language(s): English Issue: 34/2010

The paper deals with conclusions reached during the Slovak Strategic Forum (May 22 – 23, 2009) discussions focused on the European Security and Defence Policy. The conclusions from the 3rd Slovak Strategic Forum have been published in PANORAMA of global security environment 2009 by Center for European and North Atlantic Affairs1 . It examines a security dimension of bilateral relations between the European Union and Russia, with emphasis on a proposal of the Russian President Medvedev to create a pan-European security system. The paper accentuates the significance of energy within mutual relations, too. It examines options that the Slovak Republic, as an EU member, has within formulation of its interests towards Russia. It summarizes the security experts’ opinions on five years of existence of the European Security Strategy and concludes that it is necessary to develop a new document which should be prepared in coordination with preparation of a new NATO Strategic Concept. It focuses on the EU missions and importance of the EU battle groups in terms of comparison between the EU’s soft power and hard power. The paper assumes that the EU capabilities and capacities, including a participation of the Slovak Republic, will be strengthened. In spite of existing troubles within common engagement of civilian and military forces, the paper admits a future possibility of their connection.

The European Union and EUFOR Althea’s Contribution to a Dysfunctional Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina: Bureaucratic Politics, Emergent Strategy?

Author(s): Simon Sweeney / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2018

This article assesses the EU Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) in the Western Balkans, with a focus on EUFOR Althea in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). Althea is a military operation that conducts mainly civilian functions as well as the training of the Bah Armed Forces; its ‘civilianisation’ is symptomatic of CSDP’s orientation as a mainly civilian crisis management instrument. Althea works within the framework of the Union’s ‘comprehensive approach’ to regional development and the accession process of the Western Balkans to the EU. I argue that the mission displays the bureaucratic modus operandi of CSDP and not a Grand Strategy approach. Nevertheless, CSDP’s incremental, lowest-common-denominator, low cost, low risk bureaucratic politics have enabled a form of emergent strategy that complements the Union’s multi-instrument and comprehensive approach to development throughout the Western Balkans. I further suggest that the EU Global Strategy (EUGS) and the newly activated Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) provides opportunities for EU member states to build on low key emergent strategy to ensure that CSDP develops the substance and actorness needed to address current threats.

The European Union and Security Sector Reform in the Democratic Republic of Congo

Author(s): Ian Bausback / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2010

In recent years the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has attracted a considerable amount of attention from international actors with regards to security sector reform (SSR). The conflictridden state has been engaged by a wide array of players in the field, but perhaps none more so than the EU. The organization has recognized a role for itself in transitional justice processes and has been increasing SSR efforts outside its borders. The case of the DRC, where the EU has established a substantial presence, presents a particularly challenging environment for reform of the security sector. This paper examines the effectiveness of EU efforts in the DRC and its development as an SSR actor.

THE EUROPEAN UNION BETWEEN “THE UNITED STATES OF EUROPE” AND “EUROPEAN UNION INC.”

Author(s): Silviu Neguţ,Marius-Cristian Neacşu / Language(s): English Issue: 43/2012

This study was born in response to the different phrases that tried “prophesising” the future of the “European project”. Thus, we put face to face two idioms and at the same time two stances in which the European Union might find itself in a possible future, respectively “The United States of Europe” (an idea older than the European Union itself) or “European Union Inc.”. The first represents a unitary block with political value, while the second was used by American analysts in a more derogatory way to illustrate this struggle of “Europe” between “a sort of greater Switzerland” from a political point of view and “a transnational corporation” from an economic standpoint. This interrogation, which is both philosophical and systemic, - what is the European Union or what does it desire to be? –, was especially complicated by the international economic crisis that seems to have shed light again on identity fanaticism of any kind and extremist discourse, none of which are too distant in Europe’s history. Taking all of the above into consideration, European Union’s future remains uncertain.

The European Union Legal Framework and the Fight against the Illicit Trafficking of Cultural Property Coming from Situations of Armed Conflict

Author(s): Sabrina Urbinati / Language(s): English Issue: 2/2018

Since the beginning of the Iraqi and Syrian conflicts, the illicit trafficking of their cultural property has increased exponentially. Beside States, several international organizations are engaged in the fight against this illicit trafficking, such as the United Nations, UNESCO, and the European Union (EU). According to the relevant resolutions of the United Nations Security Council, the EU has adopted Council Regulation No. 1210/2003 concerning certain specific restrictions on economic and financial relations with Iraq, and Council Regulation No. 36/2012 concerning restrictive measures in view of the situation in Syria, both of which address issues related to the illicit trafficking of cultural property.

The European Union, Russia, and the Future of the Transnistrian Frozen Conflict

Author(s): Theodor Tudoroiu / Language(s): English Issue: 01/2012

In recent years, increased European Union interest in its eastern “neighborhood” has been hailed as a possible solution of the Transnistrian frozen conflict. The fall of the communist authoritarian regime of Chişinău and the internal crisis of the Smirnov regime in Tiraspol also modified the conditions of the nineteen-year conflict. However, the European involvement in Moldova is perceived by the Kremlin as an intrusion in its own domaine réservé. Moreover, the 2008 war in South Ossetia illustrates Russia’s return to the early 1990s policy of overt instrumentalization of the post-Soviet frozen conflicts. This volatile situation is analyzed in order to predict the future evolution of the Transnistrian conflict in the larger context of the developing regional rivalry between Brussels and Moscow.

The European Union’s Conflict Resolution Capacity in Armenia, Georgia and Moldova: Undermining the Eastern Partnership?

Author(s): Mher Hakobyan / Language(s): English Issue: 25/2017

The current article presents an overview of the European Union’s conflict settlement mechanisms in Armenia, Georgia and Moldova and discusses their impact on these countries’ Europeanisation in the framework of the Eastern Partnership. A comparative analysis suggests that the EU’s conflict resolution capacity is largely dependent on the significance attached to conflict by the partner countries and the applicability of the EU’s soft power mechanisms.

The European Union’s strategy on Afghanistan.

Selected Issues

Author(s): Mirza Sabawoon / Language(s): English Issue: 3/2019

The attack on the World Trade Center of September 11, 2001 evidenced a growing terrorist threat to the US, as well as to the European Union. It is not surprising then that the EU started to combat terrorism abroad. Afghanistan posed such a large threat that the European community decided to actively participate in the war with the Taliban, and then in a peace mission in that area. The article analyzes the evolution of the European Union’s commitment to helping Afghanistan, democratization, reconstruction of the country and its structures, creation of civil society and improvement of the quality of life. The tenets of the latest EU strategy for Afghanistan in 2017 are also considered, which put the strongest emphasis on the issues of respect for human rights, increasing the role of women in social life and ensuring peace and stability in the region.

THE EUROPEANIZATION OF FOREIGN POLICY IN THE FACE OF THE RUSSIAN DISINFORMATION WAR

Author(s): Maili Vilson / Language(s): English Issue: 2/2016

Since 2014 a key development emerging from the crisis in Ukraine has been the extensive use of various disinformation and propaganda techniques used by Russia against not only Ukraine, but also against the European Union (EU) member states and the West in general. While such campaigns were gradually acknowledged in Berlin, Brussels, and Washington, the reactions of the EU and NATO came with a long delay. This article focuses on the institutional and political (re)actions of the EU to the Russian disinformation campaign against the European Union member states and Eastern neighborhood countries after the beginning of the Ukraine crisis in 2014. The key developments are the launch of a special Eastern StratCom Task Force within the EEAS as a completely new institutional formation, the adoption of the Action Plan for Strategic Communication, and the increased financial support for the European Endowment for Democracy. Tracing the EU collective response indicates that there was a decision of the member states to favor an EU-level solution over a solely national one in the foreign policy arena. This article argues that these developments are indicative of the Europeanization of the foreign policies of the member states, which is in itself a remarkable development given the altered European security environment.

The Eurozone Crisis: Short‑Run versus Long‑Run Solutions

Author(s): Jens Pickert / Language(s): English Issue: 24/2017

RESEARCH OBJECTIVE: The main objective of this article is to present the result of the comparison of the short‑run and the long‑run solutions available for the Eurozone crisis. The main focus lies in examining if the provisions provided for the short‑term are sufficient compared to the long‑term solutions. THE RESEARCH PROBLEM AND METHODS: The existing monetary policy in the European Monetary Union at the beginning of the crisis will be examined together with the measures pursued immediately following the crisis as well as future prospects. The study is based on a literature review. THE PROCESS OF ARGUMENTATION: The monetary policy showed structural problems clearly emphasizing that the Eurozone was not prepared to address this crisis. The first reactive measures were taken several months after the start of the crisis. The implemented solutions on the short‑run did not meet the requirements to garner lost trust and determination. In summary, the decided provisions on the short‑run solutions were not sufficient. RESEARCH RESULTS: On the one hand, some efforts were made to find short run solutions. But these short‑run solutions could not solve the financial difficulties of the affected Eurozone countries. On the other hand, long‑run solutions are highly discussed in the literature but are not set in place. Therefore, only a political and monetary union can solve the structural problems of the Eurozone. However, in the foreseeable future, politicians need to spend more efforts into this aim. CONCLUSION, INNOVATION AND RECOMMENDATION: The paper underlines the need for a political and monetary union. A first step in the long‑term would be the introduction of the European Monetary Fund and later on the Eurobonds.

The EU's multifaceted approach to resilience building in the Eastern Neighbourhood. Security sector reform in Ukraine

Author(s): Edina Lilla Mészaros ,Constantin-Vasile Toca / Language(s): English Issue: SI/2020

The EU's Global Strategy for Foreign and Security Policy is based on five pillars, one of which prioritizes state and societal resilience to the East and South. However, the promotion of state and societal resilience in its vicinity is not portrayed as a totally altruistic policy, being motivated also by rational considerations, as fragility beyond borders threatens the EU's vital interests, while a resilient state is a secure state, and security is crucial for prosperity and democracy. Accordingly, the current article has set as its main objectives the deciphering of what the European Community understands by state and societal resilience in its neighbourhood, and what mix of instruments is using for achieving it. We have chosen as our case study to examine the efficiency of the EUAM mission in resilience building in Ukraine. Within these lines we advance a multifaceted approach to resilience, as in our opinion, stability and prosperity in the Eastern vicinity cannot be achieved only through Deep and Comprehensive Trade Agreements, cross-border cooperation projects, various ENP instruments, but also through more active diplomacy, preventive measures and engagement in crises and conflict management under the auspices of the Common Security and Defence Policy.

The EU's responsibility in the securitization of Eastern Europe – prospects for using the full potential of the CSDP in the region

Author(s): Gabriela Cristina Șpaiuc / Language(s): English Issue: 3/2021

The level of ambition and strategic autonomy of the European Union in the global approach of conflicts and crises was tested in the context of unsolved conflicts which characterised the security environment in the East European neighbourhood area. We set out to analyse the main strategies, security policies and tools used by the EU in relationship with the countries of the Eastern Partnership, in response to various kinds of security problems in the region. The coherence of the European policies regarding the role of securitization of countries from the Eastern border of Europe depends on the use of the whole potential of legal instruments set out in the treaties. At the same time, the Union relevance is defined by the adaptation of these policies to the security needs resulted from the political instability and the military threats to which the countries of this region are exposed.

THE EVALUATION OF RUSSIA'S FOREIGN POLICY TOWARDS GEORGIA FOLLOWING THE ‘ROSE REVOLUTION’

Author(s): Ekaterine Lomia / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2020

For more than twenty-eight years, following the disintegration of the Soviet Union, Russian-Georgian relations have been a substantial ground for mutual confrontation, sharp dispute, and a lack of trust. Continuous tensions and disagreements have adversely affected efforts to achieve a proper balance in bilateral relations between the neighboring countries and resulted in a number of direct and indirect confrontations. Whilst the Russian president seeks to restore Russia’s great power status, regain its past glory and control strategically important regions of the former Soviet space, Georgia, from the very first day of independence, tries to maintain its sovereignty and territorial integrity, develop modern state institutions, strengthen democratic values and integrate into the Euro-Atlantic structures. The paper aims to study Moscow’s current foreign policy strategy towards Georgia following the ‘Rose revolution’ and argues that Russia’s military intervention in Georgia, in August 2008, was a clear illustration of classical realism used by a great power in the XXI century. Russia actively uses hybrid warfare and regularly employs economic leverage on Georgia to eventually achieve its political ends in the Caucasus region.

The Evolution of Deterrence: From Cold War to Hybrid War

Author(s): Wojciech Lorenz / Language(s): English Issue: 2/2017

The theoretical foundations of the deterrence concept were developed during the Cold War and used by the U.S. and NATO to reduce the risk of military confrontation with the USSR. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the dissolution of the Warsaw Pact and the 11 September terrorist attacks, the U.S changed its deterrence policy. Although Russia’s aggressive policy forced NATO to reinstate deterrence, it will be supported by other forms of influence to limit the risk of confrontation in Europe.

THE EVOLUTION OF THE INTERNATIONAL SYSTEM IN THE CONTEXT OF CLIMATIC CHANGES IN THE ARCTIC

Author(s): Mihai-Răzvan ILEA / Language(s): English Issue: 75/2020

The current international system faces a new form of risks and threats generated by climate change, the results following the increase of global temperature which managed to influence the the states’ conduct. Following this phenomenon, which caused the withdrawal of the polar ice cap, one of the most affected regions is the Arctic area. The changes that have appeared in the region of the polar territories support access to new resources and the emergence of a new maritime route, which have triggered many new implications from many international actors in the development of the area. In the context of the latest evolutions, within the current literature, a new hypothesis began to draw its lines linked to the formation of a regional security complex. Many of the arguments of the hypothesis are linked to the violent actions of Russia to protect and exploit the Arctic theories.

THE EVOLUTION OF THE MEDIA OPERATION IN THE CONTEXT OF THE CURENT SECURITY ENVIRONMENT

Author(s): Nicoleta Annemarie Munteanu / Language(s): English Issue: 2/2021

The theoretical conceptualization of the media operation, extremely little discussed by specialists in the military and/or media is an original approach, based on the use of comparative research methods of certain military operations that are relevant to achieving the proposed goal.The identification of the principles for the media operation, practically the conception approach, is the cornerstone that leads to the identification and argumentation, through mixed ways, including progressive, comparative, dialectical and chronological ways of the structures and activities specific to this new type of operation and the factors that determine the transformation of the media operation into media war.