Civilian Crisis Management and the External Dimension of JHA: Inceptive, Functional and Institutional Similarities

Abstract

The fragmented European competences in the field of security policy appear increasingly at odds in a context of cross‐border and transnational security threats. Discrepancies have initiated a process of adaptation, in particular with regard to external and internal security policies. This article investigates these developments and underlines the growing similarities arising between the European Union civilian crisis management activities and the external dimension of Justice and Home Affairs (JHA). After examining the factors which led to their inception, as well as the respective institutional discourses supporting both fields, the article emphasizes the fact that civilian crisis management and the JHA external dimension not only share ‘functional similarities’ but also a common ‘functional frame’; that of protecting the EU’s internal security regime. The sociological institutionalist framework adopted reveals the mechanisms through which the rapprochement is taking place, for example by systematic recourse to security sector activities, and the proactive role played by European institutions and the various security actors — police officers, judges and border guards.