EU’s public perceptions and policy on security and defence

Abstract

The author believes that a sense of security is crucial, and its protection could be achieved through a developed defence policy. The EU's common security and defence policy (CSDP) has come a long way in its development and has not yet reached full integration within the Union. This dissertation aims to describe the historical path of CSDP, as well as the change in public attitudes towards it, as registered by Eurobarometer’s surveys. The findings show that support for the CSDP over the period 2004-2022 is stable and high, characterized by low deviations from the mean level. Next, the author distinguishes two clusters of Member States that support the CSDP the strongest and the weakest, describing the progress of the formed public opinion in relation to the factor of nationality. Finally, the thesis finds a large difference in the degree of support for a concept closely related to security and defence - namely the creation of a common European army. The findings show that positive perceptions towards the creation of a permanent common military structure are many times lower than overall support for the CSDP.