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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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  • Facade view of buildings in Brussels, Belgium
    01July 2021
    EUISS contributes to Belgian seminar on the Strategic Compass

    From 1-2 July 2021, Daniel Fiott - Security and Defence Editor at the EUISS - contributed to a seminar on the Strategic Compass, which was organised by the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Belgian Ministry of Defence. 

  • Image of event panellists
    29June 2021
    EUISS at the 2021 EU Defence Washington Forum

    On 29 June 2021, Daniel Fiott - Security and Defence Editor at the EUISS - was invited to speak at the 2021 EU Defence Washington Forum, which was organised by the EU Delegation to the United States and the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). 

  • 21June 2021
    Civilian CSDP and hybrid threats

    On 21 June, EUISS Senior Analyst Giovanni Faleg participated in the meeting of the EU Council's Horizontal Working Party on Enhancing Resilience and Countering Hybrid Threats. Dr Faleg discussed how civilian CSDP missions can better contribute to address, and be protected from hybrid threats. The initiative was supported by the Portuguese Presidency of the EU.

  • Soldiers carrying EU flag © EUuropean Union 2014 - European Parliament
    18June 2021
    Strategic culture: an elusive but necessary foundation for EU security and defence?

    On 18 June 2021, the EU Institute for Security Studies (EUISS) and the Direction générale des relations internationales et de la stratégie (DGRIS), French Ministry for the Armed Forces, organised a seminar on strategic culture and EU security and defence.

  • Blue light passing over fibre optic cable.
    15June 2021
    Daniel Fiott presents analysis on technological sovereignty to the European Parliament

    On 15 June 2021, Daniel Fiott - Security and Defence Editor at the EU Institute for Security Studies (EUISS) - was invited to present his views on technological sovereignty to the European Parliament’s Panel for the Future of Science and Technology (STOA).

  • Title of the event and logos of participating organisations
    14June 2021
    EUISS facilitates EU SatCen - European Space Agency workshop on climate security

    On 14 June 2021, the EU Institute for Security Studies (EUISS) helped facilitate a workshop on climate security and earth observation that was jointly organised by the EU Satellite Centre (EU SatCen) and the European Space Agency (ESA).

  • EU Flag blowing in the wind © EUNAVFOR Atalanta, 2013
    11June 2021
    EUISS present at the High-Level Course on CSDP

    From 7-11 June 2021, EUISS co-organised module 4 of the 16th High-Level Course on the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP).

  • Photo of chain and title of the event
    04June 2021
    The Strategic Compass: how to ensure security of supply and enhance the EU’s resilience?

    On 4 June 2021, the EU Institute for Security Studies and the Ministries of Defence of Finland and Latvia organised a webinar on security of supply and the Strategic Compass. The webinar attracted approximately 90 participants from EU member states and EU institutions and it took place in the context of the EU Strategic Compass dialogue phase.

  • Centro Cultural de Belém gets ready to receive the Portuguese Presidency of EU Council.
    02June 2021
    EUISS engaged in the EU Military Committee Mini Away Day

    On 2 June 2021, Daniel Fiott - Security and Defence Editor at the EUISS - was invited to moderate a conference organised by the Portuguese Presidency of the Council of the EU and the EU Military Committee (EUMC).

  • Hoisting of the portuguese flag
    01June 2021
    Daniel Fiott speaks at an international seminar on the Strategic Compass

    On 1 June 2021, Daniel Fiott - Security and Defence Editor at the EUISS - spoke at a webinar organised by the Portuguese National Defence College, the Portuguese Ministry of National Defence and the Portuguese Presidency of the Council of the EU.

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    22July 2016
    After the EUGS: specifying the military tasks
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    This Alert looks at the indications in the EUGS on the way the military instrument(s) at the EU’s disposal should be used, further developed (in a cooperative manner) and connected to other internal and external actors.

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    22July 2016
    Fellow submarines
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    Given the recent increase in Russian underwater activity in the Baltic Sea and North Atlantic, how can Europe to collectively manage, deter, and counter any undersea provocations? This Alert explains how the best underwater defences are submarines themselves.

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    22July 2016
    After the EUGS: connecting the dots
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    The forthcoming publication of the European Commission’s Defence Action Plan (EDAP) and the likely creation of a European Defence Research Programme (ERDP) make institutional streamlining and creative thinking in the field of defence vital. How can the EU best rationalise its defence policy?

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    22July 2016
    After the EUGS: mainstreaming a new CSDP
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    This Alert explains why CSDP ‘White Book’ or a Security and Defence Strategy (SDS) will have to be developed if the EUGS is to be fully implemented. But what should an SDS entail?

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    01July 2016
    Euro 2016 – teaming up for security
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    With the UEFA European Championship 2016 having kicked off in France last month, this Alert looks at the unprecedented collaborative efforts of France and its international partners to combat the terrorist threat facing the tournament.

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    01July 2016
    Civilian crisis management: towards a new paradigm
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    What developments in and around Europe have challenged the conceptual and practical boundaries of EU civilian crisis management (CCM)? And what are the implications of the increasing involvement of Justice and Home Affairs (JHA) agencies?

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    29June 2016
    A Global Strategy for the European Union’s Foreign And Security Policy
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    The strategy, under the title Shared Vision, Common Action: A Stronger Europe, has been elaborated under the leadership of the High Representative. It reflects the collective views expressed in the process and offers a strategic vision for the EU’s global role. In these challenging times, both for Europe and globally, the strategy highlights common ground and presents a common way forward.

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    26May 2016
    US forces – between Europe and Asia
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    Recent developments to the east and south of Europe have pushed European defence back onto the agenda in Washington. What steps has the US taken to guarantee the security of its transatlantic allies? And are they enough?

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    19April 2016
    EUISS Yearbook of European Security 2016
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    The EUISS Yearbook of European Security (YES) 2016 is the Institute’s annual publication compiling key documents and data related to the EU’s external action for the year 2015. YES is an indispensable publication that aims to inform experts, academics, practitioners and, more generally, all those wishing to know more about the EU and security-related matters through the showcasing of crucial facts and figures.

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    13April 2016
    Envisioning European defence – Five futures
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    This Chaillot Paper – a collective endeavour on which the five authors have collaborated – outlines five possible future scenarios for European defence. The aim is to develop plausible and coherent descriptions of what European defence might look like a decade or two from now in order to point out the choices and decisions that need to be made today.

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