Security and Defence Subcommittee (SEDE) - European Parliament

The AFET/SEDE delegation visited Kyiv, Zaporyzhya, and Mariupol (Ukraine) from 30 January to 1 February 2022. It was the first AFET mission to Ukraine since December 2019 and took place against the backdrop of a massive Russian military build-up on the border between Ukraine and Russia as well as on the border with Belarus.
The main purpose of the mission was to show solidarity with Ukraine, its population and institutions, and gather important factual elements on the security crisis in and around the country.
Location : Ukraine
Mission report
Source : © European Union, 2022 - EP

Source : © European Union, 2022 - EP

Length of video : 37'

Disclaimer : The interpretation of debates serves to facilitate communication and does not constitute an authentic record of proceedings. Only the original speech or the revised written translation is authentic.
Source : © European Union, 2022 - EP

This analysis looks into the complex relationship between two trends in international governance: an increase in multilateral arrangements between countries in order to govern internationally on the one hand, and a lack of democratic control over the decisions taken by multilateral organisations or conferences on the other. Multilateralism in the modern sense refers to an international mode of operation involving peaceful negotiations and diplomacy, also referred to as a ‘rules-based international order’ or ‘rules-based multilateralism’. Several European countries have recently launched initiatives in support of multilateralism, in reaction to the increasingly unilateral behaviour of states undermining the existing rules-based international order. Apart from the European Union, no other multilateral organisation has a parliamentary body with the competence to block or amend its decisions, which indicates that there is a democratic deficit in these multilateral organisations. An initial response to such a democratic deficit is the involvement of national parliaments in international decision-making. This is known as ‘parliamentary diplomacy’. Secondly, the involvement of civil society in international decision-making through protests, petitions, consultations or participation can also enhance democracy. Thirdly, the organisation of national referenda on international decisions can be used by national governments or citizens’ initiatives to increase democratic legitimacy. Fourthly, a lack of democracy at international level can also be countered by creating an ‘alliance of democracies’, aimed at multilateral cooperation between democratic countries rather than the democratisation of multilateral organisations. These are mostly alliances of Western countries, which risks emphasising the differences between West and East or North and South. Three short case studies of parliamentary diplomacy with the strong involvement of the European Parliament (the Parliamentary Conference on the World Trade Organization (WTO), delegations to the Conferences of Parties of climate change agreements and the NATO Parliamentary Assembly) show that enhancing multilateral democracy is not the only aim of parliamentary diplomacy and that each case reveals a different mix between the ‘parliamentary’ aspect of democratisation and the ‘diplomacy’ aspects of information exchange or influencing.
Source : © European Union, 2022 - EP

The next meeting of the Subcommittee on Security and Defence (SEDE) is scheduled to take place on 30 June 2022.

The meeting agenda and documents will be published here.

SEDE missions:

• SEDE mission to Iraq from 24-28 May 2022

• SEDE mission to Georgia from 10-14 April 2022

SEDE meetings' calendar - first half of 2022
SEDE meetings' calendar - second half of 2022
EP calendar 2022 revised
Source : © European Union, 2022 - EP

Source : © European Union, 2022 - EP

Length of video : 140'

Disclaimer : The interpretation of debates serves to facilitate communication and does not constitute an authentic record of proceedings. Only the original speech or the revised written translation is authentic.
Source : © European Union, 2022 - EP

Length of video : 50'

Disclaimer : The interpretation of debates serves to facilitate communication and does not constitute an authentic record of proceedings. Only the original speech or the revised written translation is authentic.
Source : © European Union, 2022 - EP

Length of video : 82'

Disclaimer : The interpretation of debates serves to facilitate communication and does not constitute an authentic record of proceedings. Only the original speech or the revised written translation is authentic.
Source : © European Union, 2022 - EP

Length of video : 84'

Disclaimer : The interpretation of debates serves to facilitate communication and does not constitute an authentic record of proceedings. Only the original speech or the revised written translation is authentic.
Source : © European Union, 2022 - EP

The Subcommittee on Security and Defence will be briefed by the EEAS Deputy Secretary General, Charles Fries on the conclusions of the Foreign Affairs Council and of the Special meeting of the European Council, on 15 June. The debate will focus on the decision to increase military assistance to Ukraine.

With Mr Jiří ŠEDIVÝ, Executive Director of the EDA, Members will discuss the outcome of the first event organised by the Agency in the framework of the newly launched Hub for EU Defence Innovation, and the role to be played by the EDA in the implementation of the short-term tool aimed at strengthening European defence industrial capabilities through voluntary joint procurement.
Meeting agenda and documents
Live streaming
EU Fact Sheets: Security and Defence
Source : © European Union, 2022 - EP

Source : © European Union, 2022 - EP

Evaluating EU Security Sector Reform (SSR) and Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration (DDR) policy framework and the implications for strengthening an integrated approach for CSDP
SEDE organises a public hearing on 'Evaluating EU Security Sector Reform (SSR) and Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration (DDR) policy framework and the implications for strengthening an integrated approach for CSDP' on Thursday, 16 June 2022 from 11.00 to 12.30hrs in room SPAAK 5B1 and remotely, with external experts.
Location : SPAAK 5B1
Programme
Poster
Source : © European Union, 2022 - EP

Evaluating EU Security Sector Reform (SSR) and Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration (DDR) policy framework and the implications for strengthening an integrated approach for CSDP
SEDE organises a public hearing on 'Evaluating EU Security Sector Reform (SSR) and Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration (DDR) policy framework and the implications for strengthening an integrated approach for CSDP' on Thursday, 16 June 2022 from 11.00 to 12.30hrs in room SPAAK 5B1 and remotely, with external experts.
Draft programme
Poster
Source : © European Union, 2022 - EP

Source : © European Union, 2022 - EP

Source : © European Union, 2022 - EP

The EU’s subsea data cable network is both vital for global connectivity and vulnerable. This study provides a systematic review of the current security threats, as well as the actors at the origin of these threats. Building on reports and expert input, the paper takes stock of current awareness, preparedness and response mechanisms, both at the EU and Member State level. A number of recommendations suggest how to improve the resilience of the cable network. Proposals build on the need to enhance EU-wide awareness, improve coordination and share information across EU institutions and Member States. In addition, surveillance capabilities must be advanced, response and repair mechanisms strengthened, and the topic mainstreamed across external action.
Source : © European Union, 2022 - EP

In recent years, security and defence policy has become one of the most burgeoning fields of European cooperation, and the war in Ukraine is further accelerating this integration dynamic. Yet, the formal role of the European Parliament (EP) has not been recalibrated to fit this new setting. Indeed, as the intergovernmental blueprint of the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) remains unaltered, the EP’s role is limited. In light of the rapidly growing scope of CSDP activities and initiatives, which are likely to further expand given the present geopolitical context, one might wonder whether the way in which parliamentary prerogatives set out in EU law are put into practice is compatible with the Union’s general principles of democracy, sincere cooperation, and institutional balance. This in-depth analysis finds that, by virtue of the fundamental democratic principle underpinning the EU edifice, the EP undeniably has a role to play in the CSDP realm. Despite the EP’s more limited involvement in relation to CSDP than to other policy fields, it cannot plausibly be construed so narrowly as to undermine the democratic principle applying to any decision-making process at the EU level – both ex ante and ex post. Respect for the right to information constitutes the very basis for both the EP’s role in democratic oversight and its ability to hold the Commission, which is increasingly active in the field of defence, to account.
Source : © European Union, 2022 - EP

Length of video : 142'

Disclaimer : The interpretation of debates serves to facilitate communication and does not constitute an authentic record of proceedings. Only the original speech or the revised written translation is authentic.
Source : © European Union, 2022 - EP

Source : © European Union, 2022 - EP