1. Introduction

1. Introduction

Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine has increased the urgency of the issue of European sovereignty in European policy. European sovereignty itself has featured in the political discourse for some time. As far back as 26 September 2017, the French president Emmanuel Macron presented his ideas for the further development of the European Union at Sorbonne University in Paris.1 His call for a ‘sovereign Europe’ initiated a far-reaching debate. Meanwhile terms such as ‘open strategic autonomy’, ‘European resilience’, or occasionally ‘strategic interdependence’ may be heard instead.

The European Council’s Strategic Agenda 2019 – 2024 sets out the objectives of European sovereignty as follows: ensuring stability, setting standards and promoting the values of the European Union.2 Resilience also forms one of the pillars of the European Commission’s reconstruction policy to overcome the economic impact of the Covid pandemic. 3 The European Commission has already presented methodically high-grade analyses on strategic dependencies as part of the EU Industrial Strategy. 4 The key areas requiring action are also well analysed in the Strategic Foresight Report 2021. 5 In Germany, the SPD, the Greens and the FDP all supported the EU’s sovereignty mission in its coalition agreement, aiming to “increase the strategic sovereignty of Europe”. It also expressly mentions “the systemic rivalry” between democracies and autocracies.

There is broad debate within and between the member states about what exactly these terms mean.

6 This debate has increased momentum since the beginning of the war and now has a sharper focus on security policy. The informal meeting of European heads of state or government on 10 and 11 March 2022 centred on “bolstering defence capabilities, reducing energy dependencies and building a robust economic base”. The European Parliament has also addressed the role of the EU in an evolving geopolitical environment, including a detailed study by its research service on the course of the debate so far.7

These discussions also need to cover the industrial political dimension. Which dependencies are especially critical? Who has what control over industrial production processes? And where does industry itself require protection against harmful interference?

The outbreak of the war has greatly increased the difficulty of taking strategic decisions, particularly in key issues. Recent events have prompted an in-depth re-evaluation not only of how best to establish our defence capabilities and safeguard our energy supply but also of investments in the health industry. Despite the current uncertainties, European sovereignty has become a top priority which must be addressed in parallel to the day-to-day priorities. This policy paper forms part of this endeavour.

1 Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs (2017). Initiative for Europe from President Macron. A sovereign, united and democratic Europe. 26 September. 2 European Commission (2019). EU Strategic Agenda for 2019-2024. 21 June. 3 European Commission. Recovery and Resilience Facility. 4 European Commission (2021). Commission staff working document | SWD - Strategic dependencies and capacities. 5 May. Brussels. 5 European Commission (2021).Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council | Strategic Foresight Report. 8 September. Brussels. 6 Politico (2020). Europe wants ‘strategic autonomy’ - it just has to decide what that means. 15 October. 7 European Parliament (2020). On the path to ‘strategic autonomy’: The EU in an evolving geopolitical environment. September.