The role of Cyprus, Luxembourg and Malta in the European security and defence policy

Abstract

This dissertation is a researched study of the role played by Cyprus, Luxembourg and Malta in the European Security and Defence Policy from a historic, economic, political and security point of view. These three smallest EU Member States have been chosen as the focus of this thesis because of their inherently different geopolitical and economic characteristics. Cyprus, a divided island at the eastern Mediterranean border of the Union, with a history of Non-Alignment; Luxembourg, a landlocked State at the heart of the Union, with a record of being a founder member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation as well as having a considerable economy; and lastly Malta, an island at the southern border of the European Union in the centre of the Mediterranean with a status of neutrality. All of these factors determine the nature of their respective participation in the European Security and Defence Policy and offer the possibility of making a comparative study based on different perspectives. This study begins by providing an introductory historical analysis of the European Union's search for a security framework, and goes on to trace the development of the European Security and Defence Policy from the St. Malo Summit in 1998 up to the present day. Turning to the national level, the thesis proceeds to examine the political considerations and foreign policies of these three Small States in respect to the European Security and Defence Policy. Moreover, the various forms of participation by Cyprus, Luxembourg and Malta in this rapidly developing policy and their financial contributions is analysed, taking into account each Small State's inherent challenges and other international obligations.