The EU as a Global Player The Common Foreign Policy and the Common Defence Policy of the European Un

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The EU as a Global Player? The Common Foreign
Policy and the Common Defence Policy of the
European Union

• Dr. Burkhard Auffermann
• (Burkhard.Auffermann_at_uta.fi)
• Lecture 9.3.2006

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Purpose

•  Basing on the history lecture on 23.6., an
  essential sector of the deepening European Union
  is presented and analysed in this session common
  and security policy, and common defence. What are
  the major fields of European Unions global
  policies? What are the motives? Will it be
  successful?

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Programme

• Sectors and fields of EUs global policies
• external relations in general, CFSP/ESDP,
  development assistance, enlargement policy,
  global trade policy, humanitarian aid policy,
  human rights policy
• Actors and institutions
• Security and defence
• In competition with US?

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World player external relations

• The sheer size of the European Union in economic,
  trade and financial terms makes it a world
  player. The EU has a web of bilateral and
  multilateral agreements covering most countries
  and regions of the globe. The biggest trader and
  home to the worlds second currency, the EU also
  spends more than 500 million a month in
  assistance projects in all five continents.
  Handling the Unions external relations is
  literally a global responsibility.

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To speak with one voice? CFSP

• The idea that the European Union should speak
  with one voice in world affairs is as old as the
  European integration process itself. But the
  Union has made less progress in forging a common
  foreign and security policy over the years than
  in creating a single market and a single
  currency. The geopolitical changes following the
  collapse of communism, and the outbreak of
  regional crises in the Balkans and beyond, have
  led EU members to redouble their efforts to speak
  and act as one.

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Development assistance help?

• Nearly half the money spent to help poor
  countries comes from the European Union and its
  member states, making it the worlds biggest aid
  donor. But development policy is about more than
  providing clean water and surfaced roads,
  important though these are. The Union also uses
  trade to drive development by opening its markets
  to exports from poor countries and by encouraging
  them to trade more with each other.

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Enlargement limits?

• The entry of eight central and eastern European
  countries together with Cyprus and Malta into the
  European Union on 1 May 2004 was a historic
  achievement, ending centuries of division. Europe
  reunited means a stronger, democratic and more
  stable continent, with a single market providing
  economic benefits for all its 450 million
  citizens.

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Global trade global power?

• The European Union is the worlds biggest trader,
  accounting for 20 of global imports and exports.
  Free trade among its members underpinned the
  successful launch nearly 50 years ago of the EU.
  The Union is therefore a leading player in
  efforts to liberalise world trade for the mutual
  benefit of rich and poor countries alike.

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Humanitarian Aid

• Images of conflict and disaster fill our
  televisions screens and newspaper front-pages
  every week. The European Union is at the heart of
  a network whose role is to alleviate the ensuing
  human suffering. The aim is to get aid to those
  who need it as quickly as possible, irrespective
  of race, religion or political convictions, or
  whether the crisis results from a man-made
  conflict or a natural disaster.

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Human rights

• Human rights, democracy and the rule of law are
  core values of the European Union. Embedded in
  its founding treaty, they have been reinforced by
  the adoption of a Charter of Fundamental Rights.
  Respect for human rights is a prerequisite for
  countries seeking to join the Union and a
  precondition for countries who have concluded
  trade and other agreements with it.

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• About EU external relations
• The external relations policy of the Barroso
  Commission is based on three key basic
  propositions on the EUs role in the emerging
  world order. The EU is a global player it
  pursues a specific foreign policy philosophy
  which one could term effective multilateralism
  and, thanks to its specific nature, the Union
  disposes of a wide range of foreign policy
  instruments which are particularly suited to
  respond to today's challenges. The President has
  established a Group of Commissioners, chaired by
  him, and in charge of six external relations
  services.
• (http//europa.eu.int/comm/world/dgs_en.htm)

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The 4 Commissioners

• Benita Ferrero-Waldner External Relations
  European Neighbourhood Policy, EuropeAid
  Co-operation Office
• Peter Mandelson Trade
• Louis Michel Humanitarian Aid Development  
• Olli Rehn Enlargement

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Benita Ferrero-Waldner

• is deputy chair of the Group of External
  Relations' Commissioners, and responsible for
  External Relations and European Neighbourhood
  Policy. She is responsible for two Commission
  departments External Relations and the EuropeAid
  Co-operation Office

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Peter Mandelson

• is responsible for External Trade. The
  Directorate General for Trade of the European
  Commission is in charge of implementing the
  external trade policy of the European Union.
  International trade will be at the forefront of
  international relations over the coming years.

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Louis Michel

• is responsible for Humanitarian Aid and
  Development Policy. A closely related goal is
  enhancing the effectiveness of the Union's 
  development assistance. He is reponsible for two
  services   the European Commission Humanitarian
  Aid Office (ECHO) and Development.

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Olli Rehn

• is responsible for Enlargement. This has been
  the key tool in enhancing the European model and
  meeting the objectives of our foreign and
  security policy. The Enlargement Directorate
  General manages the process under his
  responsiblity

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But other actors

• Role of the commission?
• Role of the Council?
• Role of the Member States?
• CFSP/ESDP Council/Solana
• Member States(?)

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The Council and Solana 1

• Common Foreign and Security Policy
• The member states of the EU are working to
  develop a Common Foreign and Security Policy
  (CFSP). But foreign policy, security and defence
  are matters over which the individual national
  governments retain independent control. They have
  not pooled their national sovereignty in these
  areas, so Parliament and the European Commission
  play only a limited role here. However, the EU
  countries have much to gain by working together
  on these issues, and the Council is the main
  forum in which this inter-governmental
  co-operation takes place.

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The Council and Solana 2

• To enable it to respond more effectively to
  international crises, the European Union has
  created a Rapid Reaction Force. This is not a
  European army the personnel remain members of
  their national armed forces and under national
  command, and their role is limited to carrying
  out humanitarian, rescue, peacekeeping and other
  crisis management tasks. In 2003, for example,
  the EU conducted a military operation (code name
  Artemis) in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and
  in 2004 it began a peacekeeping operation (code
  name Althea) in Bosnia and Herzegovina..

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The Council and Solana 3

• The Council is assisted in such operations by
• the Political and Security Committee (PSC)
• the European Union Military Committee (EUMC)
• and the European Union Military Staff (EUMS),
  composed of military experts seconded to the
  Council Secretariat by the member states.

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Solana 4

• The General Secretariat
• The Presidency is assisted by the General
  Secretariat, which prepares and ensures the
  smooth functioning of the Council's work at all
  levels.In 2004, Mr Javier Solana was
  re-appointed Secretary-General of the Council. He
  is also High Representative for the Common
  Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP), and in this
  capacity he helps coordinate the EUs action on
  the world stage. Under the new constitutional
  treaty, the High Representative would be replaced
  by an EU Foreign Affairs Minister.

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Voting in the Council

• How many votes per country?
• Decisions in the Council are taken by vote. The
  bigger the countrys population, the more votes
  it has, but the numbers are weighted in favour of
  the less populous countries
• Germany, France, Italy and the United Kingdom
  29
• Spain and Poland 27
• Netherlands 13
• Belgium, Czech Republic, Greece, Hungary and
  Portugal 12
• Austria and Sweden 10
• Denmark, Ireland, Lithuania, Slovakia and
  Finland 7
• Cyprus, Estonia, Latvia, Luxembourg and Slovenia
  4
• Malta 3
• TOTAL 321

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The European Union A Rising Actor in World
Politics

• European Security Strategy (ESS)
• Treaty Establishing a Constitution for Europe
• Proposal for a White Paper
• Barcelona Report on Human Security

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European Security Strategy (ESS)

• 1. An analysis of the European security
  environment and the key threats terrorism,
  proliferation of weapons of mass destruction,
  regional conflicts, state failure and organized
  crime.
• 2. The formulation of three strategic objectives
  of the European Union addressing the treats with
  preventive action (we should be ready to act
  before the crisis occursthe first line of
  defence will be often abroad), building security
  in the European neighbourhood (geography is
  still important) a world order based on
  effective multilateralism (we are committed to
  the upholding and developing International Law.
  The fundamental framework for international
  relations is the United Nations Charter).
• 3. Policy implications for the European Union
  the EU should be more active, more capable, more
  coherent, working with partners.

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Treaty Establishing a Constitution for Europe I

• Provisions relating to common security and
  defence policy
• Operational capacity drawing on civil and
  military assets to be used on missions outside
  the EU for peace-keeping, conflict prevention and
  strengthening international security in
  accordance with the principle of the UN Charter
• Progressive framing of a common Union defence
  policy
• Member States shall improve their military
  capabilities

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Treaty Establishing a Constitution for Europe II

• The creation of the option to set up a
  "structured cooperation" for those Member States
  which fulfil higher military capabilities
  criteria and wish to enter into more binding
  commitments in this matter
• the creation of the option to set up a "closer
  cooperation" on mutual defence for those Member
  States willing to do so
• the introduction of a Solidarity Clause for all
  Member States in order to cope with terrorist
  threats and catastrophes.
• Establishment of a European Defence Agency
  (development, research, acquisition and
  armaments)

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Proposal for a White Paper

• The Proposal for a White Paper is an attempt
  to operationalize the military dimension of the
  ESS by developing scenarios for EU military
  missions such as a large-scale peace support
  operation, high-intensity humanitarian
  intervention, regional warfare in the defense of
  strategic European interests, the prevention of
  an attack involving WMD, and homeland defense

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Barcelona Report on Human Security

• Report by an independent study group commissioned
  by Javier Solana
• Calls for a human security doctrine for Europe
• Global approach to security thinking, human
  rather than nation-state security military
  forces still needed but main emphasis on the
  civilian aspect of EU operations (civilian crisis
  management)

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Views on EU Security and Defence Developments I

• 1. Scope of threats in ESS too narrowly defined
• 2. Security seen as a precondition for
  development.
• 3. The strategy underlines the need for an early
  preventive crisis management, giving a priority
  to non-military means. Recent political and
  institutional developments within the EU do not
  support this.
• 4. Elements linked to developments of ESDP. The
  separation between civilian and military
  instruments of crisis prevention is unclear.

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Views on EU Security and Defence Developments II

• 5. De facto, the strategy and politics give
  priority to military resources, capacities and
  action. Problem of mandate
• 6. International disarmament is not mentioned as
  a strategic objective, but a need for increased
  armament
• 7. EU is currently weakening its civilian power,
  which had been its strength for decades

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Two Main Discourses in Current Debate on European
Defence

• 1. Power political discourse, linked to
  traditional (geopolitical) interest policy
• 2. Discourses focusing on different elements of
  human security

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DISCOURSES ON EUROPEAN SECURITY
x
HUMAN SECURITY ORIENTED APPROACHES (BARCELONA
REPORT)
TRADITIONAL POWER POLITICAL APPROACH (WHITE
PAPER)
IMPLICATIONS FOR TRANSATLANTIC RELATIONS?
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Power political discourse

• Discussion on the military dimension of the
  European Security Strategy and the planning of
  future EU military missions
• Peace support operations, humanitarian
  intervention, regional warfare defending
  strategic European interests, the prevention of
  an attack involving WMD and homeland defence.
• This is in line with discussions on the future of
  the EUs international military engagement in
  general and with institutional developments

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Discourses on Human Security, Crisis Management,
Peacekeeping

• This group of discourses is based on a more
  comprehensive understanding of security.
• Security seen as an absence of threats against
  the physical and functional well-being of human
  beings and their forms of political and social
  organisation.
• Instruments military and non-military, with the
  main stress on civilian and preventive measures

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The European Union (151021)
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Legend for the EU map

• Yellow Pre-May 1, 2004 EU Members
• Blue May 1, 2004 Acceding Members
• Lavender Post-May 1, 2004 Candidate Countries.