The European Union’s crisis management efforts: Evolution amid a shifting international order and the war in Ukraine

Finnish Institute of International Affairs (FIIA) Public

This briefing paper by the Finnish Institute of International Affairs looks at the evolution of EU CSDP and finds that as capabilities and instruments have grown in number and versatility, the political focus of CSDP has narrowed from conflict prevention and democracy building to capability support for security agencies of partner states.

The authors look at CSDP through two dimensions to examine its evolution through the present: the development of capabilities and instruments, and the political priorities and operational scope. Capabilities and instruments have developed extensively in ways that make CSDP missions and operations more modular and versatile. These capabilities include Cyber and Hybrid Rapid Response Teams and the European Peace Facility, which enable the EU to act quickly to provide security support to partner states in a variety of theatres even without the presence of a civilian or military CSDP mission or operation. The Strategic Compass also signals readiness to use Art. 44 TEU to allow a group of EU countries to conduct a mission for the EU, accelerating the decision-making process.

These developments in EU capabilities provide more opportunities for rapid, focused interventions giving higher priority to state support than major intervention, which tracks with the evolution the authors note in the political priorities of CSDP. Whereas earlier CSDP missions and operations were often in support of conflict resolution and prevention and democratisation, more recent CSDP activities provide capability support to partner countries and operate on narrower, more targeted mandates that support the EU's own security and geopolitical interests. The authors conclude with a caution, that while the developments they note make CSDP a more versatile and precise foreign policy tool, legitimacy and accountability of partner state security institutions is hazardous to ignore.

Reference: Mustasilta, K., Karjalainen, T. & Tammikko, T. (2025). The European Union’s crisis management efforts. Finnish Institute of International Affairs.