HANDBOOK ON CSDP
7.1. PARTNERSHIPS IN SECURITY AND DEFENCE
European Union/EUFOR ALTHEA
by Alison Weston and Frédéric Maduraud
The EU and its partners can mutually benefit from each other‘s knowledge, expertise and specific capabilities, thereby bringing them closer to one another.
Common challenges call for the responsibility for addressing them to be shared. The European Union Global Strategy states that ‘the EU will be a responsible global stakeholder, but responsibility must be shared and requires investing in our partnerships’. Partnerships on security and defence are both an essential instrument for enhancing EU security and are of practical relevance for EU partners’ security. Beyond this, EU partnerships can also be seen to have a positive impact on: (i) the consolidation of the multilateral rule-based order; (ii) regional security; (iii) reform in partner countries as regards the development of good governance structures, including democratic accountability; (iv) respect for the rule of law; and (v) the participation of partner countries and the EU in multinational cooperation as members of the wider international community.
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The CSDP has been an open project from the outset. A comprehensive approach means not only drawing on all of the EU’s strengths, but also working with international and regional organisations, EUROPEAN UNION GLOBAL STRATEGY ‘The EU will be a responsible global stakeholder, but responsibility must be shared and requires investing in our partnerships. C oresponsibility will be our guiding principle in advancing a rules-based global order. In pursuing our goals, we will reach out to states, regional bodies and international organisations. We will work with core partners, like-minded countries and regional groupings.’
