Foreign policy & defence
The EU must be tougher and more creative on Iran
01 October 2003
Iran is a test case for EU foreign policy. After the Iraq debacle, the EU faces a daunting challenge. The Union must demonstrate it can stay united under pressure; act tough when necessary; and persuade Washington to adjust its overall strategy.
Tensions between Tehran and the West have risen markedly in...
Tensions between Tehran and the West have risen markedly in...
Issue 32 - 2003
26 September 2003
- If it's broken, fix it! , Katinka Barysch
- A clean break for Europe , Nick Butler
- The EU must be tougher and more creative on Iran, Steven Everts
The way forward for European defence
01 August 2003
The EU has lost its military virginity. At the request of the UN, the EU sent 1,500 troops to Congo at the beginning of June 2003. The Congo mission is significant for two reasons: it is both the first autonomous EU mission - one that does not rely on NATO's help - and the EU's first military operation outside Europe.
Tough love for the EU's Eastern neighbours
01 August 2003
After it embraces ten new members in 2004, the EU will have long borders with Russia, Ukraine, Belarus and Moldova. Few people in today's EU know or care much about these countries.
Issue 31 - 2003
25 July 2003
- Tough love for the EU's Eastern neighbours, Heather Grabbe and Henning Tewes
- The way forward for European defence, Daniel Keohane
- Holidays in hell (and Hanover), Alasdair Murray
Difficult but necessary: A transatlantic strategy for the greater Middle East
10 June 2003
The US and Europe have to succeed in an exceptionally difficult undertaking. They have to meet not just a single or double challenge, but a triple one: They need to prove, to each other and the rest of the world, that the principal rationale of the US-European partnership is indeed no longer the bilateral relationship and the broader European agenda, but their ability to tackle, together, the growing problems of a troubled world.
An unconventional bargain
02 June 2003
The Convention on the future of Europe has now entered its final phase. To the surprise of many it has already reached consensus on many elements of a new constitution for the EU.
Why the EU needs a security strategy
14 May 2003
The EU urgently needs a security strategy. At present the notion of a credible European foreign policy provokes derisive laughter – and not just in Washington. What Europe lacks, even more than military capabilities, is a shared vision of today's security threats and adequate policy responses.
Europe needs an avant-garde for military capabilities
04 April 2003
Europe has many lessons to learn from the Iraq crisis. Politically, Europe is divided between "old" (those countries that opposed the Iraq war) and "new" (those that supported the war). Europe’s lack of military muscle compared to the Americans was exposed by the short Iraq campaign. The gap in transatlantic...
War: Who is to blame
01 April 2003
The French President has employed scorn and threats to insult sovereign European states, in a style reminiscent of comments made by Donald Rumsfeld and Richard Perle about France and Germany.
Issue 29 - 2003
28 March 2003
- More power for the parliament , Pervenche Bérès MEP
- The decline of American power, Charles Grant
- War: Who is to blame, Pierre Hassner
Does enlargement matter for the EU economy?
07 March 2003
The economies of the new member-states are too small to have much impact on the current EU. The EU as a whole has gained from enlargement and will continue to do so. But labour intensive industries and border regions will have to cope with increased competition. Germany, Austria and other...
The Europeans can stick together on Iraq
07 February 2003
The emergency EU summit on Iraq has produced a useful statement on what unites Europeans in their dealing with the Iraq crisis. After the very public squabbling of recent days and weeks, EU leaders pulled back from the brink and decided to underline the common ground between them. But deep...
How Europe can help the Middle East peace process
03 February 2003
The EU member-states are deeply divided over Iraq. But on the other great issue of the Middle East the Israel-Palestine conflict they have an increasingly common perspective.
Is an old versus new European divide replacing East against West?
03 February 2003
Are there really two Europes, as US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld claims? His assertion in January that France and Germany represented an 'old Europe' seemed confirmed by the emergence of a 'new Europe' just a few weeks later.
Issue 28 - 2003
31 January 2003
- How Europe can help the Middle East peace process, Steven Everts
- Is an old versus new European divide replacing East against West?, Heather Grabbe
- The return of Franco-German dominance?, Charles Grant
The EU and the Middle East: A call for action
03 January 2003
The EU urgently needs a more effective and coherent Middle East strategy. With war looming against Iraq and violence escalating between Israelis and Palestinians, the EU is under intense pressure to spell out what it can do to solve these problems.
The Copenhagen deal for enlargement
06 December 2002
The successful conclusion of accession negotiations at the Copenhagen summit on 13 December 2002 means that ten countries will join the European Union in its biggest-ever enlargement.
The EU and armaments co-operation
06 December 2002
Europe needs more military capabilities. Yet European defence budgets are static, and the cost of new military technologies is soaring. It is clear that governments need to extract more value out of each euro they spend.
Who's ready for EU enlargement?
01 November 2002
After more than a decade of preparation, 10 new members are set to join the EU on May 1st, 2004. However, in the final phase of negotiations, both the candidates and the EU have lost sight of the historic importance of this unprecedented expansion.