Bolstering Defence in the EU - A liberal intergovernmental perspective of recent CSDP developments

Gudiksen, Jakob

4. term

European Studies, Master

2018

2018-10-14

60

This thesis examines why the EU’s Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) has advanced in recent years and why member states chose measures such as PESCO and the European Defence Fund. Using Andrew Moravcsik’s Liberal Intergovernmentalism (LI), the analysis proceeds in three steps: (1) how the geopolitical context—including Russia’s annexation of Crimea, uncertainty about the US commitment to NATO under President Trump, and the prospect of Brexit—shaped national preferences; (2) how interstate bargaining and the influence of EU officials affected the decision to establish PESCO and member state commitments; and (3) how institutional design choices, including PESCO’s binding commitments, limited transfer of sovereignty, and the role of EU agencies, made these initiatives politically feasible. The study concludes that heightened geopolitical pressures increased the need for capability development to support the EU and NATO as security providers, and that the chosen measures reflect both agenda-setting by EU officials and a sovereignty-preserving PESCO design. It closes with a brief discussion of LI’s strengths and limitations in explaining these developments.

Dette speciale undersøger, hvorfor EU’s fælles sikkerheds- og forsvarspolitik (CSDP) for nylig er blevet styrket, og hvorfor medlemsstaterne har valgt netop tiltag som PESCO og Den Europæiske Forsvarsfond. Med udgangspunkt i Andrew Moravcsiks Liberal Intergovernmentalism (LI) analyseres udviklingen i tre trin: (1) hvordan den geopolitiske kontekst – herunder Ruslands annektering af Krim, usikkerhed om USA’s forpligtelse til NATO under præsident Trump og udsigten til Brexit – har formet nationale præferencer; (2) hvordan mellemstatslige forhandlinger og EU-aktørers indflydelse har påvirket valget om at etablere PESCO og medlemsstaternes engagement; og (3) hvordan valget af institutionel udformning, herunder PESCOs bindende forpligtelser og begrænsede suverænitetsafgivelse samt EU-agenturers rolle, har gjort disse tiltag politisk mulige. Studiet konkluderer, at skærpede geopolitiske rammevilkår har øget behovet for kapacitetsopbygning, som kan understøtte EU og NATO som sikkerhedsudbydere, og at valget af tiltag både afspejler EU-embedsfolks dagsordensættende rolle og PESCOs design, der ikke kræver åbenbar suverænitetsafgivelse. Afslutningsvis diskuteres LI’s styrker og begrænsninger i at forklare disse udviklinger.

[This apstract has been generated with the help of AI directly from the project full text]

CSDP ; EU ; PESCO ; CSFP ; Liberal intergovernmentalism ; Andrew Moravcsik ; European Defence Fund ; Brexit ; Krim ; Rusland ; Geopolitik ; Forsvar ; Sikkerhed

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