Publications

The EU must not let the four horsemen of the Apocalypse weaken Europe’s security

The looming economic recovery may take its toll on Europe’s armed forces and civilian experts – they will be expected to do more with less money. This has to be avoided at all costs. Were there not four horsemen of the Apocalypse? Just as the virus was spreading in China, Europe was having to deal… Read more

17th Apr 2020
CSDP in 2020: The EU’s Legacy and Ambition in Security and Defence

The past 20 years of the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) have taught us more about the EU as an international actor. While the Union has not entirely lived up to the ambitions set down by European ministers at the Helsinki European Council in December 1999, the EU has developed the ability to deploy civilian… Read more

31st Mar 2020
Will European Defence Survive Coronavirus?

The tragedy that is the Coronavirus has already claimed too many lives, but it has also allowed Europe’s public services to shine. Citizens across Europe are rightly applauding the tireless work of medical professionals, police and transport workers. Europe’s armed forces have also been called on to roll back the virus. Whether this should be likened to… Read more

27th Mar 2020
Small can be beautiful… in defence

How are small states supposed to make sense of all the changes that have taken place in EU security and defence since 2016? It can often feel like EU defence is a subject reserved for the ‘big fish’ like France and Germany, but EU initiatives like Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) and the European Defence Fund… Read more

20th Mar 2020
Digitalising Defence: Protecting Europe in the Age of Quantum Computing and the Cloud

Abstract Digital technologies can vastly improve the operational readiness, effectiveness and technological sovereignty of Europe’s armed forces. For defence to benefit from digitalisation, both the greater interoperability of digital technologies and financial investment is required. The Multi-annual Financial Framework is a test for how serious EU member states are about the digital agenda but low national defence R&D investments are… Read more

11th Mar 2020
A Future Scenario for a More Strategic EU Defence

Abstract As the journalist from Euronews asked what it was like to be held hostage by jihadists for four months since June 2024, the three student backpackers could not hold back the tears. Europeans Paulus Klimitz and Katriona Wicedz and the American John O’Connor were visibly emotional as the EU Ambassador to Burkina Faso thanked EU forces… Read more

24th Jan 2020