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 Common Foreign & Security Policy (CFSP)

 

Overview

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Global and regional crises and challenges, coupled with developments within the EU, have made new demands on the EU's external activities. Therefore it was decided to develop a Common and Foreign Security Policy (CFSP) for the European Union. The contents of this policy and the tools used to implement it are detailed in this website.

The European Union can organise peace-keeping actions in troubled areas
The European Union 
can organise peace-keeping 
actions in troubled areas

  1. Background
  2. How the CFSP works
  3. The role of the Commission in the CFSP process
  4. External representation and the role of the Troika
  5. Other Institutional roles in the CFSP process
  6. Conclusion

1. Background

The CFSP was established as the second pillar of the European Union in the 1993 Treaty on European Union signed at Maastricht. A number of important changes were introduced in the Amsterdam Treaty which came into force in 1999, and since then there have been numerous developments in CFSP. It has been agreed to embark on a common security and defence policy (CESDP) within the overall framework of the CFSP. Work has continued apace. The European Council at Laeken of 14-15 December 2001 adopted a declaration on the operational capability of the ESDP, officially recognising that the Union is now capable of conducting some crisis management operations. Interim structures established after the Amsterdam treaty have become permanent. With the Nice Treaty , certain amendments to the CFSP provisions of the treaty were agreed. All these developments are described in more detail below.

2. How the CFSP works

The Amsterdam Treaty spells out five fundamental objectives of CFSP:

  • to safeguard the common values, fundamental interests, independence and integrity of the Union in conformity with the principle of the United Nations Charter ;
  • to strengthen the security of the Union in all ways;
  • to preserve peace and strengthen international security, in accordance with the principles of the United Nations Charter, as well as the principle of the Helsinki Final Act and the objectives of the Paris Charter , including those on external borders
  • to promote international co-operation;
  • to develop and consolidate democracy and the rule of law, and respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms.

The treaty also identifies several ways in which these objectives are to be pursued:

  • defining the principles and general guidelines for the common foreign and security policy, which is done by the European Council ;
  • deciding on common strategies. These instruments were introduced by the Amsterdam Treaty and set out overall policy guidelines for activities with individual countries. Each strategy specifies its objectives, its duration and the resources that will have to be provided by the EU and the Member States. So far there are Common strategies on Russia, Ukraine, Mediterranean and the Middle East Peace Process. They too are decided by the European Council .
  • adopting joint actions and common positions. These commit the Member States to adopting a certain position and a certain course of action. They are decided by the General Affairs Council .

Additionally, mechanisms for regular political dialogue with a whole range of third countries have been set up, usually with troika meetings at ministerial, senior officials and working group level, summits and in some cases, meetings with all Member States and the Commission at ministerial or senior officials level.

Outside these regular mechanisms, the EU maintains a political presence, particularly in areas of crisis or conflict. Special Representatives have been appointed to the Great Lakes (Africa), Middle East, Stability Pact, Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Ethiopia/Eritrea and Afghanistan. These Special Representatives provide a direct link to developments in these areas and allow the EU to have an active involvement in the search for lasting solutions.

3. The Role of the Commission in the CFSP process 

The Commission is fully associated with the work carried out in the field of CFSP. The Commission may, as any Member State, refer to the Council any question relating to CFSP and may submit proposals to the Council - although it does not have the sole right to do so as in Community matters. The Commission may also, as any Member State, request the Presidency to convene an extraordinary Council meeting and make suggestions to the Policy Unit for work to be undertaken. The Commission also implements the CFSP budget (under the EC budget) including through appropriate financial proposals.

The Commission is fully associated with the development of CESDP, and participates and contributes accordingly, on the basis of the competences assigned to it by the Treaty.

The Commission is solely responsible for a number of external policies of the EU, such as trade. It also has sole responsibility for Community actions in the areas of humanitarian, development assistance, rehabilitation and reconstruction and sanctions regulations( more information: Civilian Crisis Management).

The Council and the Commission are jointly responsible for ensuring consistency of EU external activities as a whole, in the context of its external relations, security, economic and development policies.

4. External representation and the role of the Troika 

While external representation in the Community sphere falls on the Commission delegations, in the CFSP sphere it falls mainly on the Presidency of the Council, operating through the local ambassador of the country holding the Presidency. Commission delegations, together with representatives of the future Presidency, are fully associated with the Presidency as part of a 'local troika', carrying out démarches to third countries and establishing joint Heads of Mission reports on political developments. As the network of Commission delegations is wider than the foreign embassy system of many of the Member States, they will sometimes be the sole representative of the EU in a country and in these cases their representative role for the EU as a whole increases.

The Community role in the representation of European interests outside the EU has seen considerable development in recent years. The Treaty expressly assigns the Community external powers affecting the following areas: trade policy, associate countries and overseas territories, relations with other international organisations, research and technical development, environment policy, education, vocational training and youth, culture, public health, trans-European networks, economic and monetary union and, finally, development co-operation. In these areas, the Community, either exclusively or in tandem with the Member States, exercises a very wide and varied spread of external powers, mainly but not exclusively economic in nature.

5. Other Institutional roles in the CFSP process 

There are a number of different bodies/actors involved in the elaboration and implementation of CFSP:

  • The European Council - Heads of state and government and the Commission President meet at least once every half year (i.e. at least once per Presidency) to set priorities and give broad guidelines for EU policies, including CFSP. The European Council lays down the principles and general guidelines for the CFSP, and adopts common strategies.
     
  • The Council of Ministers - EU Foreign Ministers and the Commission External Relations Commissioner meet as the General Affairs Council at least once a month. They decide on external relations issues, including CFSP. This consultation on external policy leads to joint actions and common positions , whose political implementation is mainly incumbent on the Presidency. The budgetary execution and implementation of Joint Actions is ensured by the European Commission.
     
  • The Presidency of the Council plays a vital part in the organisation of the work of the institution, notably as the driving force in the legislative and political decision-making process. It organises and chairs all meetings and works out compromises capable of resolving difficulties. This is a key role in CFSP, where decisions are taken by unanimity. The Council is presided over for a period of six months by each Member State in turn, in accordance with a pre-established rota. The Presidency is assisted by the Council Secretariat and, since Amsterdam, the Secretary-General/High Representative.
     
  • The European Parliament is kept regularly informed and consulted on the broad orientation and choices in this area.

Amsterdam introduced new structures/roles:

  • The High Representative - The Amsterdam Treaty introduced the new office of a High Representative (HR) for CFSP. The office is fused with that of Council Secretary General. The HR "shall assist the Council in matters coming within the scope of the CFSP, in particular through contributing to the formulation, preparation and implementation of policy decisions, and, when appropriate and acting on behalf of the Council at the request of the Presidency, through conducting political dialogue with third countries". The HR assists the Presidency in the external representation of the EU and assists the Council in the implementation of policy decisions in CFSP matters. Mr Javier Solana was appointed as first HR and took office on 18 October 1999.
     
  • A Policy Planning and Early Warning Unit has been set up within the Council Secretariat. Its mandate includes monitoring, analysis and assessment of international developments and events, including early warning on potential crises. It drafts policy options, which may contain recommendations and strategies for presentation to the Council under the responsibility of the Presidency. The Commission seconds one member of the Policy Unit staff. The High Representative is also assisted by the Council Secretariat.

Structure at officials' level

  • The Committee of Permanent Representatives (known as 'Coreper') - Ambassadors of EU Member States to the EU and the Commission Deputy Secretary General meet at least once a week to prepare Council meetings and decisions, including those related to the General Affairs Council and CFSP.
     
  • The Political and Security Committee (PSC, or COPS as it is known by its French acronym) is the lynchpin of the CFSP and the ESDP. Pending the ratification of the Nice Treaty, which definitively amalgamates the functions of the Political Committee set out in art 25 of the Treaty and the PSC, there is also the possibility of convening the PSC at Political Director level. The PSC has a central role to play in the definition of and follow-up to the EU's response to a crisis. It is composed of national representatives at senior/ambassador level, placed within the framework of Member States' Permanent Representations. The Commission is fully associated with the work of the PSC, through its own representative.

The PSC prepares recommendations on the future functioning of the CFSP, including CESDP and deals with the day-to-day running of these issues, including preparation of CFSP aspects of the deliberations of the General Affairs Councils. Furthermore, in the event of a crisis, the PSC is the Council body which deals with crisis situations and examines all the options that might be considered as the Union's response within the single institutional framework and without prejudice to the decision-making and implementation procedures of each pillar.

  • A network of European Correspondents in all EU Member States and the Commission coordinate daily CFSP business and prepare the meetings of the PSC and the CFSP points of the General Affairs Council and the European Council. They maintain day-to-day contact on CFSP issues via the Coreu (Correspondance européenne) telex network which allows for an ongoing exchange of encrypted messages among Member States, the Secretariat and the Commission.
     
  • The group of Relex Counsellors examines institutional, legal and financial aspects of proposals made within the CFSP. It prepares the work of Coreper on Joint Actions and it ensures the inter-pillar consistency. The European Commission is an active member of this group.
     
  • CFSP Working Groups composed of experts from EU Member States and the Commission meeting along geographical (e.g. Asia, Africa, Latin America) and functional (UN issues, drugs, terrorism) lines to elaborate policy documents and options for the consideration of CFSP bodies.

The following new committees have moreover been established within the Council to enhance the implementation of the CFSP:

  • The European Union Military Committee (EUMC) is composed of the Chiefs of Defence represented by their military representatives. The EUMC is responsible for providing the PSC with military advice and recommendations on all military matters within the EU. It exercises military direction of all military activities within the EU framework, including the European Union Military Staff. The Chairman of the EUMC attends meetings of the Council when decisions with defence implications are to be taken.
     
  • The European Union Military Staff (EUMS) within the Council structures provides military expertise and support to the CESDP, including the conduct of EU-led military crisis management operations. It performs early warning, situation assessment and strategic planning for Petersberg tasks including identification of European national and multinational forces and implementation of policies and decisions as directed by the EUMC.
     
  • The Politico-Military Group examines the politico-military aspects of all proposals within the framework of the CFSP.
     
  • The Committee for Civilian Aspects of Crisis Management gives advice on the political aspects of non-military crisis management, conflict prevention etc. It has given priority in its work to implementing the specific target for policing. It has dealt with strengthening the rule of law, with a view to setting specific targets in that area.

6. Conclusion 

There are two broad contributions of the Commission to CFSP. First, the Commission plays a treaty-specific role in CFSP. The Treaty requires that the Commission be "fully associated" with the CFSP work, where it enjoys, along with Member States, a right of policy initiative, manages the CFSP budget line and brings to the CFSP debate the EC policy areas where it has a clearly defined role. Second, there is the Commission's role as external representative in all the European Community areas - this involves the Commission both in policy formulation in Brussels, and in the representation of EC interests throughout the world by means of its extensive network of delegations. The Commission is moreover tasked, with the Council, to ensure the consistency of the Union's external activities in the context of external relations, security, economic and development policies.

In sum, the CFSP provides an exciting dimension to the overall work of the EU. The institutions of the EU, including the Commission, are now involved in most of the traditional fields of international diplomacy. The entry into force of the Treaty of Nice and the development of the European Security and Defence Policy will provide opportunities for further development of this field of European policy.

Latest update: February 2002


See also