The European Union and Crisis Management

The concept of crisis management covers a substantially wide range of situations and activities. Essentially it includes however interventions designed to put an end to armed conflict, to protect civil populations and reconstruct devastated areas. Originally these are mainly military operations to manage crises but now combine both military and civil means, the latter being responsible for the re-establishment of the smooth running of State services within the context of the reconstruction of territories.

Crisis management has long been an internal matter. Its inclusion within the European Union's CFSP since the beginning of the 1990's can be explained by the phenomenon of "rogue States" that emerged in several areas of the world after the end of the Cold War. This "decline of States" is now considered to be one of the main threats to European security. The European Union has also provided itself with the necessary means to counter this threat.

The "construction of States" is believed by many to be a key element of a true international security policy. This objective which is central to the European Crisis Management Policy raises considerable problems. At most such an enterprise demands both significant resources and a complete range of know-how. Political will and skill are vital both to ensure the co-operation of populations and their elites in the field as well as guaranteeing that a necessarily long term enterprise will not be abandoned midway, notably in the face of various difficulties. Finally there is the issue of knowing whether a State, a specific type of regime should be considered as a universal political form or one that can be rendered universal.[2].