A quoi sert l’Union Européenne au 21ème siècle?
Discours donné lors de la Conférence inaugurale des cours d’été du Mouvement européen basque. (Photo credit: rockcohen, Flickr)
Europe in the World
In a world that is largely driven by competition and rivalry (and partnership, yet) between great powers, understanding the Grand Strategy of each of these powers is crucial. So is developing a Grand Strategy for the EU itself. An EU that acts as one, as one pole of the multipolar world on a par with the other powers, is the only way to safeguard the way of life that the Member States of the EU have chosen, based on democracy, the free market, and equality.
Power cannot be divided: a global player must have political, economic, as well as military power. To that end, the Europe in the World Programme analyses the diplomacy and defence of the US, China, and Russia, and of the EU, NATO, and their members. We also focus on geoeconomics, researching Open Strategic Autonomy and the Global Gateway as key EU instruments, as well as the geoeconomic approaches of the other powers.
Defence policy is our third main axis of research, with a particular focus on European defence and its interaction with NATO, but also on nuclear deterrence and the deterrence of hybrid threats. Throughout all three research axis, we devote special attention to the role of Belgium, including notably the development of its own National Security Strategy and diplomatic and military capabilities.
Publications
The Lisbon treaty and ESDP: transformation and integration
In the few years since its inception following the 1998 Franco-British Saint- Malo Summit, the European Security and Defence Policy (ESDP) has progressed enormously, certainly when compared with the preceding […]
Balancing defence and security efforts with a permanently structured scorecard
Two major developments are set to change defence and security landscapes in the coming decade: the Lisbon treaty will affect in a significant way the European Union’s ‘external action’ and […]
European defence in the wake of the Lisbon treaty
The finishing touches for the setting up of the European Security and Defence Policy (ESDP) were put, in the small hours of a Monday morning in what is today the […]
Permanent structured cooperation and the future of ESDP
The efficiency problem of Europe’s armed forces is well known: of an impressive overall number of over two million men and women in uniform in the EU-27, only a meagre […]
Studia Diplomatica
Vol. LXI, Issue 2 (2008): Migration and development. Global governance
MIGRATION AND DEVELOPMENT – Unfolding the benefits of the migration and development nexus, Rik Coolsaet – The Global Forum on Migration and Development: a new path for global governance?, Romeo […]