Defence and Security Policies (module 7)

Language

English

Main themes

The course deals with the instruments deployed by the European Union to coordinate and consolidate the Member States’ security policies, in both their internal and external dimensions.
On the one hand, the progressive development of cooperation in home affairs will be reviewed through the gradual adaptation of the institutional framework, from the Maastricht Treaty to the Lisbon Treaty, and the examination of progress in the fields of police cooperation and judicial cooperation in criminal matters, particularly in the fight against terrorism and international organized crime.
On the other hand, the course deals with the political and strategic dimension of the EU external relations. It describes the origins and the evolution of the European cooperation (EPC), Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) and of the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP). The decision-making process and the effectiveness and efficiency of the tools and policies put in place are studied.
The very nature of security policies is analyzed to characterize the essence of the power of the EU on the European and international level. The relevance of the strategic documents produced by the EU is also scrutinized. Finally, the course presents a range of theories to help students better understand the security and defence policies of the EU.

Learning outcomes

At the end of this learning unit, the student is able to :

identify and understand the main internal security challenges of the EU today identify and understand the main defence challenges of the EU today apply theoretical insights to the EU’s security and defence policies critically assess the EU’s actorness in areas of Member States competence

Faculty or entity

> IEEB