EUROPEAN SECURITY AND DEFENCE POLICY

Knowledge and Understanding
By the end of the course, students will have acquired a solid understanding of the institutional, political, and strategic foundations of the European Union’s foreign, security, and defence policies. They will gain knowledge of basic knowledge of Public Policies and Management, governance,  decision-making processes, actors (EU institutions, Member States, NATO, UN), theories of EU integration, and the evolution of the EU as a global actor.

Applied Knowledge and Understanding
Students will be able to apply their acquired knowledge to analyze contemporary international issues involving the EU, including crisis management, defence cooperation, enlargement, integration, and relations with major global powers. They will develop the ability to evaluate case studies and apply theoretical approaches to practical scenarios in foreign and security policy.

Making Judgments (Autonomy of Judgment)
Students will develop critical skills to assess the strengths and weaknesses of the EU’s role in the international system. They will be able to evaluate competing perspectives from academic literature, policy debates, and official documents; identify reliable sources; and assess the implications of emerging global challenges such as hybrid threats, cybersecurity, and external threats.

Communication Skills
Students will acquire the ability to clearly and effectively communicate complex concepts related to EU foreign and security policy, both orally and in writing. They will be trained to use the appropriate technical and political terminology of the field, and to present arguments in a structured and persuasive manner to both specialist and non-specialist audiences.

Learning Skills
Students will develop the capacity to pursue further study independently in the areas of European and international politics. They will learn how to autonomously identify, study, and synthesize academic texts, official policy documents, and reports from international organizations, producing both critical analyses and concise reviews of the literature.

The course covers the following topics:

• Theories of European integration and their application to the CFSP/CSDP
• The policy cycle and public policy
• Multilevel governance
• Characteristics and dynamics of EU foreign and security policy
• CFSP/CSDP institutions, actors, and governance structures
• The role of the EU in the world order
• EU missions and operations
• The EU and the war in Ukraine: new and traditional forms of warfare

EU integration 

Hooghe, Liesbet, and Gary Marks. "Grand theories of European integration in the twenty-first

century." Journal of European Public Policy 26, no. 8 (2019), pp. 1113-1133.

MLG

Hooghe, L., & Marks, G. (2003). Unraveling the central state, but how? Types of multi-level governance. (Reihe Politikwissenschaft / Institut für Höhere Studien, Abt. Politikwissenschaft, 87). Wien: Institut für Höhere Studien (IHS), Wien. https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:0168-ssoar-246200

 Policy Cycle 

Hill, M. (1997). The policy process. Harlow, UK: Prentice Hall/Harvester Wheatsheaf. Ch. 4 pp. 43-63

EU foreign and security policies

The European Union’s Foreign, Security, and Defence Policies

Ana E. Juncos, and Anna Maria Friis

https://doi.org/10.1093/hepl/9780198862239.003.0019

Elie Perot, Klose Stephan, “Differentiation in EU Security and Defence Policy,” in The Routledge Handbook

of Differentiation in the European Union (Routledge, 2022).

(accessed from here https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.4324/9780429054136-

29/differentiation-eu-security-defence-policy-elie-perot-stephan-klose )

EU as a foreign policy actor ( Eu role in global politics, trans-Atlantic relations)

Ulrich Krotz, “Momentum and Impediments: Why Europe Won’t Emerge as a Full Political Actor on the

World Stage Soon,” Journal of Common Market Studies, Vol. 47, No. 3 (May 2009), pp. 555-578.

Christopher Hill, “The capability-expectations gap, or conceptualizing Europe’s international

role,” Journal of Common Market Studies 31, no. 3: pp. 305-328.

Ulrich Krotz and Richard Maher, “International Relations Theory and the Rise of European Foreign and

Security Policy,” World Politics, Vol. 63, No. 3 (July 2011), pp. 548-579.

Wallace, W. (2017). European foreign policy since the Cold War: How ambitious, how inhibited?. The British Journal of Politics and International Relations, 19(1), 77-90.

Tocci, N. (2020). Resilience and the role of the European Union in the world. In Resilience in EU and International Institutions(pp. 25-43). Routledge.

Ulrich Krotz and James Sperling, “The European Security Order between American Hegemony

and French Independence,” European Security, Vol. 20, No. 3 (September 2011), pp.

305-335.

Pernille Rieker and Marianne Riddervold, ‘Not so Unique after All? Urgency and Norms in EU Foreign and

Security Policy’, Journal of European Integration 44, no. 4 (19 May 2022): 459–73,

https://doi.org/10.1080/07036337.2021.1977293

Xue Mi, ‘Strategic Cultures between the EU Member States: Convergence or Divergence?’, European

Security 0, no. 0 (31 December 2022): 1–25, https://doi.org/10.1080/09662839.2022.2159384.

Defense and security

Danilo Di Mauro, Jonas J. Driedger und Ulrich Krotz, "Military and Civilian Crisis

management," in Handbook on Governance and the EU, edited by Sonia

Lucarelli and James Sperling. Northhampton: Edward Elgar, forthcoming in 2023.

Juncos, A. E., & Blockmans, S. (2018). The EU’s role in conflict prevention and peacebuilding: four key challenges. Global Affairs, 4(2-3), 131-140.

Tocci, N. (2017). From the European Security Strategy to the EU Global Strategy: explaining the journey. International Politics, 54, 487-502.

Landman, L. (2015). The EU Maritime Security Strategy: Promoting or Absorbing European Defence Cooperation?.

https://pure.rug.nl/ws/portalfiles/portal/33438924/Landman_The_EU_Maritime_Security_Strategy_2015.pdf

Data: https://cadmus.eui.eu/handle/1814/48944

DI MAURO, D., KROTZ, U., & WRIGHT, K. (2017). EU's global engagement: a database of CSDP military operations and civilian missions worldwide: codebook: version 2.0. 2003-2017.

And new Edition (forthcoming). 

Assessment method

·      Type of assessment: a midterm written exam with open questions or a final oral exam;  data analysis lab work on CSDP missions and operations. 

·      Structure: the midterm exam has 5 open questions, it will be 2 hours long and no material is allowed during the test; The  data analysis lab work consist in the creation of tables (about five) and figures with captions. It should be delivered one week before the official exam date. Oral exam are mede for those not doing the mid term exam and will focus on the same topics.    

·      Components and weight: . midterm written exam 60%;  data analysis lab work + participation in class activities 40%

·      Assessment criteria: grading follows the programme’s shared grading grid below (18–30 and lode), based on knowledge of the topics, capacity to apply and discuss them critically, and clarity of exposition. [Add course-specific criteria if relevant.]

·      Attending / non-attending students: attendance is compulsory according to the course regulation. Students could be admitted as non-attending under the late-visa exemption at oral or midterm written exam. 

·      Language: English.

·      Use of AI tools: AI tools may be used for language editing but not to generate the analysis; undeclared use is treated as academic misconduct.

Learning assessment may also be carried out on-line, should the conditions require it.

To ensure equal opportunities and in compliance with current laws, interested students may request a personal interview in order to plan any compensatory and/or dispensatory measures based on educational objectives and specific needs. Students can also contact the CInAP (Centro per l’integrazione Attiva e Partecipata – Servizi per le Disabilità e/o i DSA) referring teacher within their department (https://www.cinap.unict.it/content/referenti).

In Italy, grades for individual courses range from 18 (minimum pass) to 30 (maximum). The highest grade may be awarded with “lode” (cum laude, distinction) for outstanding performance. The scale is not directly convertible to percentages or GPA, but it is roughly comparable to “sufficient–excellent” ranges used internationally.

Failed (0–17): The student does not demonstrate knowledge of the basic concepts of the course and/or has not completed the required share of work.
18–20 (Pass – Sufficient): The student demonstrates a basic knowledge of the topics of the course but shows significant difficulties in discussing or applying them, with limited capacity to engage critically.
21–24 (Fair – Discrete): The student demonstrates an adequate knowledge of the topics of the course and can engage with materials, cases, or discussions in a simple way, though often requiring guidance.
25–27 (Good): The student demonstrates a solid knowledge of the topics of the course and can address assignments, case analyses, or discussions independently, with only minor inaccuracies.
28–30 (Very Good – Excellent): The student demonstrates comprehensive knowledge of the topics of the course, engaging autonomously with readings, cases, and debates, and making appropriate connections across themes, with very few errors.
30 e lode (Distinction): The student demonstrates outstanding mastery of the course topics, addressing assignments and discussions with originality, critical insight, and virtually no errors.

Which are the main arguments of post-functionlist theory of EU integration? 

Describe a trend in CSDP interventions worldwide.