Columbia International Affairs Online: Working Papers

CIAO DATE: 02/2015

Why Europe must stop outsourcing its security

Richard Gowan, Nick Witney

December 2014

Center on International Cooperation

Abstract

Europe should expect ever-increasing pressure from refugees on its southern borders unless it is prepared to bear the cost and risk of military operations to control conflict in Europe’s southern neighborhood, according to this policy paper. It says while the growing refugee problem generated by conflicts in the Middle East and Africa calls for a more interventionist response from the EU, Europeans have preferred to leave the job to others, notably the UN. In effect, the EU is “outsourcing” its crisis-management responsibilities to the UN, ECOWAS or the African Union – while confining its own role to logistical, financial and training support.