By Antonio Pollio Salimbeni
"An arc of instability surrounds the European Union." Terrorist attacks, extremist groups exploiting porous borders, migration, and destabilising actions by Russia: this is the extremely worrying context outlined in the document - which
Europolitics
had access to - prepared by the EU's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Federica Mogherini, for the European Council of 25-26 June. At their summit, the heads of state and government should confirm Mogherini's mandate to develop the EU's…
“EU cannot ignore defence”
This was one of her commitments to MEPs during her hearing in September 2014: Federica Mogherini wishing, as much as possible, to revive the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP). For her, the CSDP “is working well, but is confronted with certain difficulties in guaranteeing sources of financing, intelligence and common logistics” faced with “the major use of conventional arms by terrorists and criminals, as well as by rebel forces, militia and entities other than the member states”. To respond to these challenges, Mogherini is, at this stage, satisfied with very general notes. She considers that the EU’s tools “must adapt to the deterioration of security conditions” at global level, without specifying further. Mogherini nevertheless cites three cases of European silence. Firstly, the EU battlegroups (founded on the participation of the member states), which have never been deployed on the ground. Next, Article 44 of the Lisbon Treaty, which allows the Council to entrust the implementation of a mission to a group of states, which has never been activated either. It is the same with regard to the lack of coordination of defence budgets. Mogherini agrees: while the EU is not a military alliance, “it cannot ignore defence in its security policy”.
