The current extremely complex strategic context (Russia, China, USA, Brexit, Turkey, the wave of populism and Euroscepticism) have reactivated discussions about the EU's ability to define and promote its strategic interests in the international arena. In this sense, for the first time in the evolution of over six decades of the European project, the defence was assumed as a priority by the Juncker Commission, by adopting and implementing the Package of specific initiatives with the 3 important components - PESCO, EDF and CARD. The projection for the future Multiannual Financial Framework 2021-2027, with allocations of over € 35 billion for defence-related areas, confirms this trend and we can expect defence to gradually enter the area of ​​Community policies, making the Commission a major player in this area. , together with the Council and the Member States.

At the same time, several topics of strategic debate and initiatives related to common security and defence have been launched within the EU, outside the EU institutional framework, with the potential to divide the strength of the community bloc, as the much-discussed idea of ​​the future European Army or much more pragmatic European Intervention Initiative, promoted by France.

 

I2DS2 organizes a debate on these essential topics for the future of Romania's security and defence policies on December 12, starting from the following topics:

 

• The EU's ability to cope with increasingly competitive global competition and the chances of achieving genuine strategic autonomy. What arguments do the new defence initiatives (mainly PESCO and EDF) offer in this direction and what are the premises for ensuring the continuity of the Juncker Commission's approach in the future?

 

• Transatlantic relations, the EU-NATO partnership and the challenge of the topic of the "future European army", as conceived by the main promoters (Paris, Berlin). What are the common space and the specific difference between the "future European army" and the "European Defense Union" and what are the main challenges in achieving an authentic and effective Strategic Partnership between the EU and NATO? Can we predict when the EU will take on concrete responsibilities in the field of territorial defence of the Member States (currently in NATO's exclusive portfolio) or will European defence objectives remain focused exclusively on areas outside the Union?

 

• Romania and the European Defense Union - How does Bucharest play the card of European integration in the field of defence?