EU defence within the context of policy shifts in the USA and Russia

Abstract

The ever increasing global challenges and threats encountered by the European Union (EU), today are causing pressures on the same Union, to prioritize security and defence policies. European defence integration was intended to be one of the founding pillars of the Euroepan project, but it failed after France refused to adopt their own Pleven Plan to launch the European Defence Community. The protection that the United States of America provided to Europe, after establishing NATO, cannot be expected to last forever. With the election of Donald Trump, the absolute unpredictability of the US, has woke the Europeans from their inertia. The Cold War ended almost thirty years ago, but Europe is still facing an assertive Russia. With no one to turn to, the EU has turned inward and adopted a number of defence proposals in the past three years. This dissertation focuses on the way the US’s and Russia’s policy shifts are impacting the European Union defence, starting from 2008. Countless factors can be associated with the EU’s defence, however, this thesis focuses on; the Georgian War in 2008, Europe’s missile defence shield, the War in Ukraine in 2014 and cybersecurity.