Strategic Panorama 2009 - 2010 - IEEE

Eduardo Serra Rexach
ponsibility for it to the country’s government as soon as possible, provided
it is in a position to fulfil its purpose.
V
No Strategic Panorama could fail to include a chapter on Europe and
particular the present edition as it is Spain’s turn to hold the Presidency
for the first six months of 2010. We felt that the most appropriate subject
was the Treaty of Lisbon and the Common Security and Defence Policy.
This chapter is written by Lieutenant Colonel Aníbal Villalba, who combines
personal skills with the circumstance of currently serving as advisor
to the presidency of the government and is thus more familiar than most
with the aspirations and goals of the Spanish presidency in the Common
Security and Defence Policy. This policy adds to the general difficulties of
the building of Europe the specific problems derived from the existence of
the Atlantic Alliance.
The author begins by commenting on the repercussions for the CSDP
of the Treaty of Lisbon, which came into effect on 1/12/2009, as it modified
the two basic European Union texts (the Treaty on European and the
Treaty Establishing the European Community). Following its entry into
force, the European Security and Defence Policy (ESDP) is now called the
Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP), a change aimed at giving
impetus to a qualitative leap forward in this field to enable Europe to
continue to be a leading actor on the international stage; it will fall to the
Spanish presidency to make the transition.
He then goes on to describe and clarify—as the terminology is confusing—the
European institutions with competences in CSDP matters: the
European Council (which has become a substantive and independent institution
responsible for establishing general principles and common strategies
and whose president, the recently appointed Herman Van Rompuy,
represents the Union externally in CSDP affairs); the Council (of which
Spain holds the presidency in the first half of 2010), which includes the
General Affairs and External Relations Council (GAERC) entrusted with formulating
and implementing the European policy in this field. The GAERC
will be chaired in CSDP matters by the High Representative—also recently
elected—who will contribute with his proposals to drafting the Common
Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP); the «Presidency Trio» which endeavours
to ensure the continuity of these policies; the European Parliament
(which is to be regularly informed on the development of the CFSP and
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