27 January 2025
Elon Musk’s Wake-up Call for Europe
Viewing Elon Musk’s recent forays into (electoral) politics in Europe primarily as a geopolitical wake-up call to European leaders, our analysis focuses on the promise and relative weaknesses of law and policy solutions as well as institutional arrangements the EU has put in place to protect European democracies from foreign interference. The EU and its Member States must adapt quickly to the new international realities if they do not want to be norm-takers rather than norm-shapers on major international dossiers. Continue reading >>
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29 October 2024
On the Way to a European Defence Union
Is the EU on the path to a European Defence Union? Previously seen as militarily insignificant, the EU’s defence landscape is rapidly evolving in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. This post explores how EU defence is changing in terms of aims, actors, and activities. It shows that the EU has left its comfort zone as a normative power to get ready for the geostrategic challenges of our time. Continue reading >>
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28 October 2024
Law and Governance Variations of Europe’s Geopolitical Awakening
The first contribution of the online symposium Europe’s geopolitical coming of age - adapting law and governance to harsh international realities explores the profound changes in European security and defence law following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The new geopolitical realities of dealing with warfare in Europe set the scene for the symposium. Continue reading >>
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28 March 2022
Is Berlin’s Overdue Defence Policy Adjustment Also a “Game Changer” for Franco-German Relations?
What does the “paradigm shift” (Zeitenwende) – as Chancellor Olaf Scholz called the readjustment of German security and defence policy – mean for the Franco-German couple? Relations between Paris and Berlin had cooled down in recent years, particularly in relation to security and defence dossiers. Can we now expect that the ice between the two countries will melt? By no means. Even though Germany has sent a first signal that it no longer wants to close its eyes to the geopolitical realities of the 21st century, a number of touchy security and defence issues remain on the table. Continue reading >>
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28 March 2022
Ist Berlins verteidigungspolitische Kurskorrektur auch eine „Zeitenwende“ für die deutsch-französischen Beziehungen?
Was bedeutet die „Zeitenwende“ – wie Bundeskanzler Olaf Scholz sie nennt – für die deutsch-französischen Beziehungen? Insbesondere im Bereich Sicherheit und Verteidigung war es zwischen Paris und Berlin in den vergangenen Jahren frostig geworden. Ist nun Tauwetter angesagt? Mitnichten. Auch wenn Deutschland ein erstes Signal gesendet hat, dass man die Augen nicht länger vor den geopolitischen Realitäten des 21. Jahrhunderts verschließen möchte, bestehen einige sicherheits- und verteidigungspolitische Themen mit Sprengkraft fort. Drei davon werden im Folgenden näher unter die Lupe genommen. Continue reading >>
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20 September 2021
Heidelberger Salon digital: “Welt(un)ordnung und Internationales Recht”
Eine Diskussion zwischen Carlo Masala, Christian Marxsen, Carolyn Moser und Anne Peters. Continue reading >>
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06 February 2020
Frontex goes Africa: On Pre-emptive Border Control and Migration Management
Especially since the migratory pressure of 2015, the agency has discovered the significance of the African pre-frontier area. The rationale behind this reinforced engagement in Africa is one of pre-emptive border control and migration management. Continue reading >>
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03 February 2020
A Very Short Introduction to Frontex— Unravelling the Trajectory of one of the EU’s Key Actors
This first contribution to the symposium briefly outlines the genesis, development, and status quo of the agency, while the ensuing analyses will zoom in on specific politico-legal matters that are at the core of the current debate. Continue reading >>
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30 March 2019
Two Become One? On the Civil–Military Amalgamation of the CSDP
Stories on the civil–military interface in the EU’s Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) rarely have a happy ending. They tell us that bureaucratic efficiency and operational effectiveness could be enhanced if the civil and military branches of EU security and defence were better streamlined. This blogpost challenges this negative narrative and argues that a significant civil–military nexus—that is the interconnectedness of civilian and military elements in the CSDP—has already materialized. Continue reading >>
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18 November 2015
Awakening dormant law – or the invocation of the European mutual assistance clause after the Paris attacks
After the terrorist attacks of November 13th, France has invoked the mutual assistance clause in the European Treaty. What does this clause actually imply? The short answer to this question is that nobody precisely knows. The statement made by the French Defence Minister on 17 November qualified the invocation of Article 42(7) TEU as a mainly political act – implying that it is symbolic in nature. This, however, is not the whole story. France is requesting her European neighbours to stand united against external security threats – not only by declaratory statements, but by concrete military commitments. This demand, in turn, will impact on the future course of European security and defence, a policy which France has always been keen to enhance. Continue reading >>
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