European Strategic Autonomy Remains Conveniently Broadly Defined 

The EU’s much-discussed strategic autonomy remains an elusive concept, especially as the stand-off with Russia over Ukraine made clear it should not be defined as an attempt to decouple from the United States in security and economic dimensions.

The Spanish Presidency of the EU Council has included among its priority actions “the strengthening of open strategic autonomy, reducing dependence on essential supplies in food, energy and health, while consolidating alliances with our reliable partners”. It is significant that the presidency sees open strategic autonomy as part of the reindustrialisation of Europe and not as an instrument of the Common Security and Defense Policy, as usual.

This is a forward-looking approach that takes into account the profoundly changing understanding of the concept of security to a more inclusive one, which results from the experience gained in recent years, especially the new security environment in Europe after Russia’s aggression on Ukraine.

The military aspect is just one of many

Its military aspect is included in a broader framework, which will help integrate it in a more harmonious way. This is not the first signal indicating that focusing Europe’s autonomous capabilities on the military dimension seems at the same time anachronistic, confrontational and perhaps even illusory.