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1O th anniversary of the magazine
People with vision don’t need foresight. They accept that events will always come in the way, yet still hold to a certain idée fixe. It is a particular kind of vision that inspired Hartmut Bühl to launch The European - Security and Defence Union a decade ago. Hartmut could not have predicted most of the events of the past ten years, but he instinctively knew a simple truth: Europe needed to mature its thinking and outlook on matters of defence and security. It had to grapple with the challenges of a far more complex world where national, multi-national, institutional and technological dynamics
blurred traditional boundaries. His vision and challenge to us all is an inspiration for the next ten years.
Dr Christina Balis, Director Services and Products Strategy, Group Strategy & Planning, QuinetiQ, London In an uncertain world, it is more critical than ever that Europe presents a united front in its security and defence policy, bolstering our contribution to the Atlantic alliance. Hartmut Bühl and The European – Security and Defence Union have successfully focussed minds, stimulated debate and driven that agenda for last ten years.
Robert Walter (retired UK MP), President ESDA, London “
”During the past decade, The European – Security and Defence Union has turned into the leading magazine for Europe’s security and defence community. It is an important forum for readers to find an exchange on current security topics. I am also grateful to this magazine for including topics relevant to the Joint Support and Enabling Service and I wish the editorial staff continued success within the community.
Lt Gen Martin Schelleis, Chief of the German Joint Support Service, Bonn It is fair to say that in the last ten years, The European - Security and Defence Union magazine has brought together a large community of European leaders from both civilian and military sectors, EU institutions, academia and industry. From climate change to migration, from counter-terrorism and CBRN Centres of Excellence to civil protection, the magazine has always paved the way for sound and independent articles, based
on well informed interviews and extended networks of information sources. In view of this, I am looking forward to the next decade, I would like to
congratulate Mr Bühl and his team for this much appreciated initiative. Henriette Geiger, Director of Directorate People and Peace in DG-DEVCO, European Commission, Brussels Hartmut Bühl and his team have succeeded in regularly publishing a high level, independent magazine for 10 years. The magazine truly allows European defence to progress by allowing the most diverse points of view and contributions to confront each other. It was essential. It is remarkable! Happy birthday.
Jean-Dominique Giuliani, President of the Robert Schuman Foundation, Paris-Brussels Today we are much closer to establishing a true European security and defence union than ten years ago when Hartmut Bühl decided to launch the eponymous journal. His vision is now coming true in the EU along the same conceptual pattern that his magazine follows (and which make it a unique periodical in its own right), i.e. combining open political and strategic debate and expertise with unfettered military advice and innovative input from the industry. I look forward to being both an avid reader of and proud contributor to the magazine in further decades. Jirí Šedivý, Permanent Representative of the Czech Republic to NATO, Brussels A birthday signifies a continuous development. This journal is a reflection of the evolution of the EU, from the community to the global level, in its security context, discussing trends of change and stability that play a constitutive role in the development of its security and defence. The European – Security and Defence Union manages to balance an insightful approach that interconnects contemporary issues with long term implications. Europe is on its way to crystallising a single strategic culture in which disagreements, failures and successes – reflected in the diversity of subjects dealt with in this journal - constitute the common historical component necessary for a common security and defence policy. Dr Rachel Suissa (Ph.D), University of Haifa, Israel The European – Security and Defence Union 2008–2018
How it all began…
(Ed/nc, Paris) It started with a dinner in 2008. In a restaurant with a view over the Rhine, near Bonn, German publisher Uwe Proll sat down with Hartmut, who, at the time, was the Brussels correspondent of the monthly publication The BehördenSpiegel. They were enjoying a tasty French red wine while discussing the developments in Europe, shortly after the signature of the Lisbon Treaty. At the end of the evening they decided to publish a regular magazine on European security and defence. Uwe Proll said: “And you, Mr Bühl, will be the Publisher and the Editor-in-Chief”. They agreed on the title and wrote down on a beer mat: “The European –Security and Defence Union”. The idea of the magazine was born!
Hartmut went home, thrilled with the idea of creating a magazine from scratch. He had an office in Brussels, a computer, and a well-furnished address book. First, he hired a Czech student, Thomas, fluent in English and with perfect computer skills, who soon started spending his evenings in Etterbek’s Avenue des Celtes, in the new magazine’s “headquarters”. The sushi man in the basement of the building must have made a fortune …
In November 2008, the first edition of the magazine was published. Hartmut was proud and decided to not give up before having published five volumes. One day, Nannette, working as a journalist in Paris, was in town and called Hartmut to suggest having dinner together. Alas, it was the day before the deadline for closing the next edition, so Hartmut said: “Let’s have some sushi at home.” Arriving at the “headquarters” flooded with proofs, Nannette realised that he could use her help. Before sunrise the magazine was completed and Nannette was on board, ready to be part of the adventure. Hartmut decided to run the magazine until the 10 th volume. 2011 was a turning point. The magazine was put forward for CIDAN’s European Award for Citizenship, Security and Defence under the patronage of the first President of the European Council, Hermann van Rompuy. And we won!
Uwe Proll was pleased and the magazine continued, also with the support of the Director-General of the publishing house, Helga Woll. 10 th anniversary of the magazine
A lady from their office in Berlin stepped in, Beate Dach, who brought a fresh perspective to the layout of the magazine with the ad-hoc support of her colleague Cornelia Liesegang. The same year the team grew to include Alexa Keinert as Editorial Assistant. Organised, well informed and a critical reader, she was promoted to Editor a few years later. A professional English translator from Paris, Mary Zulke, took on the responsibility of correcting and translating the articles, enriching the work of the team with her expertise.
In 2017, Céline Merz from Aachen joined the team as the new Editorial Assistant freeing us from the time-consuming job of picture research. Dennis Schäfer, from the publishing house, started supporting us administratively, and our Berlin correspondent Andy Stirnal took over the coordination of industry contributions. Everything was going well.
Then, in 2018 we were deeply shocked by the death of Mary, who lost the fight against a short but severe illness. Whilst ill, she continued her work on the magazine as much as she could because she didn’t want to abandon her team. Today, we are happy that Miriam Newman-Tancredi, a bilingual freelance consultant living in London, took over Mary’s work. She fits perfectly within our small but passionate team with its members living in different European cities.
So, let’s take stock: ten years ago, Hartmut, as a lone ranger, thought that he would publish only five volumes of this magazine. Today, with this 31 st volume, we think that a lot is left to do in Europe, and that there is still room for us to contribute a small piece to the promotion of the European idea…
With our gratitude to all our guest writers and to Helga Woll and Uwe Proll for their confidence and support over the last decade,
Nannette Cazaubon Hartmut Bühl Deputy Editor-in-Chief Editor-in-Chief
