Nordic states contribution to peace and security

Abstract

Over the past years, the Nordic countries have gained a powerful voice on the stage of international affairs; in this context, this article will explore their contribution to peace and security in the sphere of the European Union. In the past 20 years, the Nordic States (in this case I refer only to Sweden, Denmark and Finland) have gradually aligned to the collective EU foreign policy while at the same time investing in reinforcing their influence in international affairs. One of their core beliefs was that peace building involves a broad range of instruments (besides military) that encompasses crises prevention and civilian capabilities. In a world characterized by complex security issues that involve multiple aspects ranging from migration and poverty to climate change, development has started to go hand in hand with security. The Nordic countries have proved several times that they have a powerful voice and can bring an added value on issues related to security and development. The paper will refer to their recent contributions and attempt to measure their influence and the consequences of their actions at international and EU level. Furthermore, the paper will also analyze contributions of the Nordic states to EU crisis management capabilities including the EU Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) operations, emphasizing how these contributions align with their foreign policies as well as assess whether they had an impact.