European defence policy at a crossroads – Germany preserving the status quo and France seeking change?

Abstract

ABSTRACT The combination of an increasingly assertive Russia with growing uncertainty over long-term US commitment to Europe's security has resulted in calls for new efforts to be made in European defence cooperation. Post-Brexit, France and Germany become the two remaining significant defence actors within the EU policy framework. Given this reconfiguration, an important question to has to be answered. Which state, France or Germany, is currently gaining more influence in European defence cooperation? A critical conceptual framework is utilised to explore the nature of Franco-German rivalry and to determine which nation is likely to obtain more influence in this policy area. Firstly, the article explores the clash between France's desire to direct European defence cooperation towards the stabilisation of Europe's southern neighbourhood with Germany's preference to minimise its own military involvement outside Europe. The article then focuses on non-EU defence solutions separately proposed by France and Germany, those being the European Intervention Initiative and the Framework Nations Concept respectively. The article finds that Germany's preferences are a considerable obstacle to attempts to create a more autonomous form of European defence cooperation and that dependence on US military strength and NATO structures continues to be an unavoidable reality.