CSDP Military Operations

Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) operations, while still novel, are rapidly becoming a vital means through which Europe projects physical power and influence beyond its borders. This chapter analyses the EU’s multilateral, intergovernmental military operations, examining where and how the EU has pursued its emerging strategic interests around the globe. It first surveys the history and politics of the thirteen CSDP mweilitary operations launched since 2003. It then dissects the nature and diversity of military missions. While the EU has deployed, on average, some 3,000 military troops around the world each day, operations have varied widely in their mandate, the number of troops involved, the number of participating member states, and the symmetry with which states support and staff these missions. The analysis underscores that CSDP operations will remain an integral part of European politics and Europe’s search for its role and place in twenty-first-century world politics.