2023 Council Conclusions on the Civilian CSDP Compact

The Council Conclusions reiterate the Council’s commitment to building and strengthening the EU’s role as a global security provider through civilian CSDP missions. It calls on EU Member States and institutions to continue and expand capability development activities and outlines the EU’s commitment to operate in compliance with international law and further utilise strategic communication, modular and scalable approaches, and increased stakeholder contributions.

The Conclusions begin by stating the importance of EU missions in the civilian approach to CSDP, highlighting the new missions in in the Gulf of Guinea, Moldova and Armenia, as well as the mission in Ukraine. In addition to reaffirming the roles of Member States, it calls on the EEAS to propose a revision of the Code of Conduct by Q1 2024 and the introduction of the Civilian Capability Development Process including the Annual Civilian Capabilities Conference. It then sets out important standards to be met and tools to be utilised by EU civilian CSDP: independent evaluation of missions’ impact, compliance with international human rights and humanitarian law, resilience against hybrid threats, strategic communication, and improved modularity and scalability through specialised teams and visiting experts. The document concludes with a reiterated call to develop a “train and equip” concept and strengthen partnerships with third states as well as cooperation with civil society. 

Reference: Council of the European Union (2023). Council Conclusions on Civilian CSDP. 

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