The European Union's Fearless Journey to Develop an Effective Security Strategy

Josep Borrell, the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, believes the European Union should no longer rely on its former ways of operations such as the sole use of military power which proved sufficient during World War. Instead, it needs to change and modify its tactics of defense so that Europe can be safer and more secure.

Mr. Borrell strongly believes that confidence should not only be found in a strong military force, but also in the ability to prevent cyberattacks and regulate the flow of migrants. His presentation draft on the Strategic Compass highlighted these issues and so much more as he proposed ways that the EU can provide better security for all its citizens in the midst of its current threats and challenges.

I agree with Mr. Borrell’s opinion in modifying Europe's defenses, but wouldn't it be more effective if the EU focused its energy and resources on preventing these challenges instead of preparing for the negative consequences?

One major area of defense that the Strategic Compass will focus on is the online spread of misinformation and cyberattacks. Prevention is better than cure and I believe the EU needs to do more to stop these online attacks from happening.

Mr. Borrell said the following words during his presentation: “Europe is in danger. It faces new threats that are not just military or territorial” (Borrell, n.d.).

Indeed, he was right, because a few days ago, there was a cyber-attack in Ukraine where hackers posted messages on government sites including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Investigations are ongoing to determine the identity of the attackers but Ukraine believes that Russia was behind the attack. Mr. Borrell is certainly on the right track to helping the EU prepare itself in the event of similar attacks in the future.

In relation to migrants, the EU needs to empower its neighboring countries so that they can stop having an overflow of illegal immigrants into the EU. Turkey hosts the largest number of refugees in the world, approximately 4 million refugees. Even though Turkey is not part of the EU, what happens in Turkey affects the EU’s budget and at the end of the day, isn’t that what the Strategic Compass is all about?

In June 2021, the European Commission proposed a total package of €5.7 billion for refugee support in the region, of which €3 billion was allocated to Turkey (European Commission, 2021). Even with this large aid that is being given to Turkey, the EU needs to realize that this is not a long term solution, but rather that there is a deeper problem (migration of people into Turkey) that needs to be resolved too.

Mr. Borrell’s overall solution can be highlighted in his statement: “Europeans will continue to favor dialogue over confrontation; diplomacy over force; multilateralism over unilateralism. But it is clear that if you want dialogue, diplomacy and multilateralism to succeed, you need to put power behind it” (Borrell, n.d.).

The Strategic Compass is certainly the solution because it will provide effective and efficient ways to handle crises. An example of how the Strategic Compass could have come into play was in how the European Allies reacted towards the abrupt withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan.

NATO and other EU countries did not have the ability to stay in Afghanistan after the United States withdrew. It also put the EU at an added disadvantage because it left the remaining NATO troops, diplomats, and local Afghans who had worked or had ties to the West scrambling and desperate for help.

“It showed, basically, how dependent we really are…because then it was immediately clear that we needed to follow the American withdrawal…,” said Jana Puglierin, senior policy fellow and head of the Berlin office at the European Council on Foreign Relations (Kirby, 2021).

According to Jen Kirby (2021), a foreign security reporter, “The dependency on the United States fuels insecurity about what happens if the country’s domestic interests diverge more profoundly from Europe’s.” This means that the US cannot continue to be the standard for the executive foreign and security decisions for the EU. The EU needs to be independent, fully confident in its own military force, so that it can continue to make its own decisions regardless of whether it is backed by the US or not.

As Mr. Borrell said, “Although the EU is not a military alliance, it should work towards a common defense, as set out in the Treaty of Lisbon” (Borrell, n.d.)

Unfortunately, some critics do not believe that the Strategic Compass is the perfect solution. Riccardo Perissich (2021), a former Director General of the European Commission, said, “... it is regrettable that the strategic compass does little to clarify the relationship between EU defence, NATO and the US. A better approach could have been to conceive the new EU security strategy not as a separate and parallel enterprise with regards to NATO, but as a contribution to the creation of a European pillar within the Alliance.”

Mr. Perissich believes that it will take a while for the EU to build a defense greater than NATO and it’s impossible for it to rise up to NATO’s level. But I believe it’s better for the EU to at least attempt to do this, than to do nothing at all.

In conclusion, I believe the Strategic Compass is a powerful and effective foreign security plan, one that can prove to be very effective if all member states work together. On the other hand, I believe it should also highlight ways in which the EU will work to regulate and solve issues relating to its neighbors, especially those who are non-EU members (Russia, Ukraine, Turkey, etc.). Because what happens in those neighboring states has a spillover effect on the EU – therefore, this plan should be all encompassing. Otherwise, I look forward to seeing the positive effects that will emerge from Mr. Borrell’s brilliant idea.

References

Borrell, J. (n.d.). A Strategic Compass to make Europe a Security Provider. European External Action Service. https://eeas.europa.eu/sites/default/files/foreword_-_a_strategic_compass_to_make_europe_a_security_provider.pdf

European Commission. (2021, December 21). EU continues supporting education of refugees and addressing migration in Turkey with additional €560 million. https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/IP_21_6931

Kirby, J. (2021, August 31). NATO allies are preparing for a future without America’s “forever wars.” How the US’s Afghanistan withdrawal echoed overseas. Vox. https://www.vox.com/22639474/afghanistan-nato-europe-refugees-germany-uk

Perissich, R. (2021, December 10). Europe's Strategic Compass: Merits and Shortcomings. Instituto Affari Internazionali. https://www.iai.it/en/pubblicazioni/europes-strategic-compass-merits-and-shortcomings