Chair in Defence Economics - IHEDN

Putting defence cooperation in Europe on the agenda

No defence cooperation is natural and cannot therefore be detached from the political and economic context in which it takes place. Cooperation can take place for strategic reasons (e.g. to maximise collective security), operational reasons (e.g. to increase the interoperability of armed forces), political reasons (e.g. to influence the defence policy of another Member State or even a third country) and economic reasons (e.g. to benefit from economies of scale, particularly for the industrial aspect of defence policy). What is important is that each cooperating State has an interest in it and that it makes sense.

The main aim of our work on putting defence cooperation on the agenda is to gain a better understanding of how and from what angle this issue emerges in Europe. Our research shows that European defence cooperation has always been a volatile issue. This means that there have been periods of enthusiasm - which have, for example, enabled the institutions necessary for cooperation to be set up and made operational - and periods of stability, with little or no change, during which defence was not a particularly high priority at European level.

In the case of France, our research shows that cooperation has become a reality for the French armed forces since the end of the Cold War. France has begun to develop a «flexilateral» approach to its defence policy, contributing to numerous arrangements with one or more partners. Some of these are based on dedicated institutions - within or outside a multilateral framework - while others are more informal, or even more ad hoc. Our work here provides an overview of defence cooperation at state level, and shows how it has diversified since the 1990s.

European cooperation in MCO

In a context where acquisition and maintenance costs are tending to rise, and budgets remain tightly constrained, the size of military equipment fleets (aircraft, armoured vehicles, ships) is tending to shrink in most European countries. Cooperation in MCO is an opportunity for the various European countries to contain the rise in costs (economies of scale, specialisation effects) while contributing to the construction of a Europe of defence in a bottom-up approach.

Cooperation in support is currently supported and encouraged by the European Defence Agency and NATO. Initiatives exist and are being developed, particularly in the naval and helicopter fields. However, it is still limited due to the heterogeneity of nations' preferences, particularly for sovereign activities.

Defence budgets in the EU

Our work on putting defence cooperation on Europe's agenda also raises the question of its economic benefits.

Given the multiplicity of possible sources, making international comparisons is a difficult task: problems of scope (over time and between countries), difficulties in obtaining reliable data, choice of relevant indicators, etc.

In addition, we need a framework for understanding the major trends in order to highlight the threats and areas of tension. In addition, the concept of «defence budget» is defined in an encyclopaedia.

Based on international data, research has been carried out to measure the nature of budgetary imbalances within the EU under the assumption that the EU is an alliance. The results show large differences in the contributions of European countries in a number of dimensions (total budget, equipment budget, R&D budget, personnel budget, troops deployed). This suggests that defence policies within EU countries are not yet integrated.

Finally, a methodological analysis of the use of defence spending to measure power and security was proposed, to show that it is useful but insufficient for an overall understanding of these phenomena.