The Nordic Countries and the European Security and Defence Policy

THE NORDIC COUNTRIES AND EU SECURITY POLICY 305multinational battle groups, also indicate a clear will to embed a coherent andcomprehensive approach to security in the future functioning of the EU. 18III. Nordic countries and their relationship to the EU as asecurity actorThe policies of Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden and their relationshipto the EU are examined here with regard to the three major changes since theearly 1990s that have been most crucial in making the EU an increasinglyindependent security actor. These changes were: first, the establishment of apolitical union and a common foreign and security policy; second, the developmentof a European security and defence policy and an EU competence in internationalcrisis management; and third, the adoption of the ESS and the emergenceof a comprehensive European security policy. 19The Common Foreign and Security PolicyThe reluctance towards the European integration process that was felt inNorway and Sweden in the early 1990s was partly owing to security policy considerations.In Norway it was feared that a European political union with acommon foreign and security policy would weaken NATO, and henceNorway’s position in the European system. In Sweden the EU’s security policyambitions were seen as incompatible with the doctrine of Swedish neutrality.Despite this general scepticism, parts of the political elite in both countriesrecognized the importance of the integration process and began to work for acloser relationship with the EU.Once Sweden had submitted its application for membership of the EU, anintense domestic debate concerning neutrality took place, and some change inthe understanding of this concept was perceived as necessary in order to permitmembership. While the first change in the national security doctrine was madein 1992, the debate concerning the need for more radical change continued afterSweden joined the EU, in 1995. In addition, there was also a greater focus onthe need to reorganize Swedish national defence forces.Norway’s security policy approach was perceived in the early 1990s to becompatible with EU membership, but at this time NATO membership andtransatlanticism dominated Norwegian security policy. After the signing of theTreaty of Maastricht, however, the Norwegian political elite wished tostrengthen their country’s relationship with the EU. The dominant security discoursealso changed towards a more balanced view of the EU and NATO,emphasizing the EU’s role as a soft security actor, with a special emphasis on18 The negative results of the referendums in France and the Netherlands in May and June 2005 meanthat the entry into force of the Constitutional Treaty has been postponed.19 For a more detailed analysis of this process see Rieker, Doctoral thesis (note 4), chapters 4–7.