Renewing Europe’s External Strategy

Abstract

Following its December 2013 discussion on defence, the European Council commissioned a review of “changes in the global environment” and the resultant “challenges and opportunities for the Union”. This is overdue. The 2003 European Security Strategy is the product of a bygone era, and reluctance to revisit it has hampered Europe’s foreign policy and contributed to the failures of the CSDP. Common external and defence policies require a shared understanding of global developments, of how Europe should respond, and of where armed forces can contribute. But no such shared understanding now exists – as recent surveys of national security strategies and strategic cultures across the EU attest. The consequences include reluctance to cooperate and misapplied defence resources. So the new review will represent an important opportunity for the member states to converge on a shared strategic narrative, and revitalise their common foreign and defence policies. The reverses Europe has suffered in the last few years should concentrate minds.