EU Foreign Affairs & Security Archives - A Path For Europe (PfEU)

Viva l’Europa: The prospects of the EU as a global security actor after the State of the Union Address

Posted on September 26, 2021 by A Path for Europe

On September 15th, President of the European Union Commission Ursula von der Leyen delivered the annual State of the Union Address. Noteworthy key priorities were the continuation of the fight against COVID-19, climate change, migration, respect for rule of law, and a European defence policy. After the speech, many were left with further questions, be it from a public health policy perspective or from a security standpoint. […]

1.5-2 Degrees of Conflict: The future of EU external action in cases of climate-induced conflict

Posted on September 20, 2021 by A Path for Europe

“Global warming is a security threat”, former UN Secretary General Kofi suggested. Data indicate that over 40% of intrastate conflicts in the last 60 years have been partially driven by competition over natural resources. Consequently, 7 out of the 10 countries most impacted by climate change already host or had hosted international peacekeeping missions. […]

Kosovo’s Track to Europeanization: Moving beyond top-down mechanisms

Posted on September 13, 2021 by A Path for Europe

Europeanization has transformed from an aspiration to an obligation and this in term has created a need for sacrificing internal democracy in terms of EU integration. Subsequently, in most cases, this results in not only a lack of implementation but more importantly a lack of ability to implement legislation. The difference being that lack of implementation may come due to lack of political will, whilst lack of ability to implement comes from the weak absorption of transformative power that the EU intends to achieve. […]

A Turning Point: How the EU’s Response Could Change Geopolitics in Eastern Europe

Posted on May 28, 2021 by A Path for Europe

As is well reported on by now, Belarusian authorities ordered a Ryanair flight traveling from Athens to Vilnius to make an emergency landing in Minsk just a few days ago. The flight was accompanied by a MiG-29. Their aim was to arrest dissident journalist Raman Pratasevich, which they brazenly did, and trotted him out to do a coerced speech where he was clearly shaken and physically assaulted. What was even more bizarre was the fact that the Belarusian government blamed Hamas for putting a bomb on the grounded Ryanair flight. Of course, Hamas denied any responsibility. […]

The Curious Case of Moldova and Its Implications for the Black Sea Region

Posted on February 24, 2021 by A Path for Europe

Back in November, the pro-EU candidate Maia Sandu won the Moldovan race for Prime Minister against pro-Russian incumbent Igor Dodon by a margin of 57.75% of the vote to 42.25%. While not a major event even in European politics, this election could be a bigger sign of a major shift in Moldova from a traditionally stalwart Russian ally to a country with budding EU aspirations, or even possibly reuniting with their Romanian siblings to the West. […]

Disinformation: One of the Greatest Threats to European Democracies

Posted on February 18, 2021 by A Path for Europe

The automation of the production and circulation of disinformation has never before been so easy and cheap. We now have automated social bots that can rapidly disseminate a post containing disinformation on average more than fifty times a day. However, their role is not limited solely to that; they are also used to rapidly generate ad revenue by directing traffic. We have only recently started to awaken to the consequences of this technology for our societies and democracies. […]

The Tigray Conflict and the EU Development Funds

Posted on February 12, 2021 by A Path for Europe

Last November, in the Ethiopian region of the Tigray, an ethnic-based political crisis broke out and quickly transformed into a military conflict. The war escalated and several thousands of civilians were killed and many more became displaced. The fighting is likely to significantly impact the unstable political situation present in the Horn of Africa: Somalia, Eritrea, Djibouti, and Sudan, as well several ethnic-based conflicts in the region. What could be the role of the EU in such a fragile context? […]

At the Intersection of Climate Change and International Security

Posted on February 8, 2021 by A Path for Europe

Terrorist attacks and weapons of mass destruction: these are just a few of the threats that come to mind when considering international security. As the United Nations warns of a new climate crisis each week, climate change is deemed as the security threat most pertinent. By threatening resource scarcity and growing global unrest with conflict potential, the climate crisis is consistently growing larger in scale and clearer in outline. […]

To QMV or Not to QMV? Paths Towards a More Efficient EU Foreign Policy-Making

Posted on February 1, 2021 by A Path for Europe

Many may have missed the news that South Dakota single-handedly stopped the former President Donald Trump from criticising China’s human rights abuses, despite the rest of the country supporting the idea. […]

Breathing Life Into the Colombian Peace Process? The EU’s Strengths and Weaknesses as a Peacebuilder

Posted on November 30, 2020 by A Path for Europe

The EU is an important promoter of peace in Colombia and has successfully taken on a role as a strong supporter of the implementation of the Peace Agreement. This article highlights the EU’s contributions to the Colombian Peace Process, but it also identifies three problems in the EU’s approach to peacebuilding in the region. […]