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Is the European Defense Union Viable?
- Kemal İnat
- 4 Ara 2018
- 2 dakikada okunur
The foreign and defense ministers of 23 EU ministers signed a protocol in Brussels on Monday, which is considered as the first step towards establishing a European defense union. The signing of this document, which sets forth the increase of defense spending, forming joint armament projects, and setting up a joint military force to employ for intervention in crises when necessary, seems to have caused an excitement among various circles within the EU.
In fact, such a development was already expected considering German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s statement that Europeans must take care of themselves from now on after a number of unsuccessful meetings with U.S. President Donald Trump, and French President Emmanuel Macron’s call for reforming the EU in a way to encompass an increase in defense cooperation.
However, the primary question that needs to be answered here is whether the will of Germany and France will be enough to form a defense union in the EU. As similar attempts in the past have failed, it seems that establishing a defense alliance independent from NATO will be a challenging task for the EU.
As similar attempts in the past have failed, it seems that establishing a defense union independent from NATO will be a challenging task for the EU.
A year after the formation of the European Coal and Steel Community (ESCS) in 1951, which laid the foundation of the EU, the treaty establishing the European Defense Community, which was led by France with the motivation of controlling Germany and excluding the U.S., failed to obtain ratification in the French parliament and thus did not enter into force. Since the French government failed to convince its own parliament into a European defense force, Western countries, including France, spent the Cold War period under the umbrella of NATO, which has always been dominated by the U.S.
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