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Iraq Conflict and Esdp
The European Security and Defence Policy emerged in the wake of Kosovo Crisis when it was found that European Union essentially lacked the capabilities to play an effective role in Bosnia and later in Kosovo. This led to a collective understanding among major European powers that a better defence system was needed by the EU to address their common defence needs. With various crisis emerging and EU trying to play a significant role, it became increasingly clear in 1990s that European defence policy had serious shortcomings and no single European state alone could play an effective role in the resolution of global crisis. But the one crisis that forces European Union to give its defence policy greater weight and deeper meaning was the Iraq conflict of 2002-2003. The reason we say that is because prior to this crisis, ESDP had not yet taken the shape that it is found in today.
September 11 attacks was probably the most significant crisis affecting the world defence policies however it was still insufficient to put a wedge between European states on their stand on Bush policies. There was consensus on how Europe would respond to Bush policies and...
However that all changed with Iraq conflict in 2002-2003 when suddenly there was a wedge between the European powers- there was Britain on one side desperately trying to support Bush on Iraq war and then there were all the rest of Europe still sticking to its low-key role in the conflict.
"Prior to the crisis in Iraq, EU state members displayed a striking degree of consensus in their approach to the foreign policies of the new Bush administration-consensus that survived the terrible events of September 11, 2001. Concurrently the collaboration among the member states led to significant progress in the development of ESDP, albeit constrained by uncertainty and ambiguity surrounding the precise nature and purpose of these policies." (Menon, 2004, p.631)
Iraq conflict did something remarkable for the development of ESDP: it exposed the wedge between member states and made it crystal clear that in a major conflict it was politically impossible to have all European states to cooperate. The dependence of Europe on…
References
Menon, Anand. 2004. "From Crisis to Catharsis: ESDP after Iraq," International Affairs Vol. 80, No.4 p. 631-648;
Speech by Strobe Talbott on October 7, 1999 at a conference at the Royal Institute of International Affairs, London, available at "www.state.gov/www/policy_remarks/1999/991007_talbott_london.html."
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