Development of the European Defense Policy

Abstract

European Union member states have always recognized the need to act together in foreign policy and defense matters, but this has proved to be a difficult challenge and hard to achieved. The principle of a common foreign and security policy (CFSP) was formalized for the first time in 1992 by the Treaty of Maastricht, but creation of formal secondary instruments for diplomacy and intervention were needed pursuant to regional conflicts in the 1990s. Such decisive actions are the European Union peacekeeping missions to several of the world’s trouble spots which promote development of the European Security and Defense Policy and design of European military structure. The first Europe defense agreement was sign on 17 of March 1948 in Brussels establishing the Western European Union. Together with the NATO Agreement they create the defense policy of Europe. In this context, the research paper aims is to explore the development of the Western European Union as a cradle for the birth of the European Union security and defense policy and the difference between the policies that are in the Union competence and the one exclusively to the Member States.