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Further beyond intergovernmentalism in defence-industrial policy ─ Member State perspectives on the establishment of the European Defence Fund

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dc.date.accessioned 2022-05-18T12:27:16Z
dc.date.available 2022-05-18T12:27:16Z
dc.date.issued 2022-05-18
dc.identifier.uri http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/40711
dc.title Further beyond intergovernmentalism in defence-industrial policy ─ Member State perspectives on the establishment of the European Defence Fund en
ethesis.faculty Valtiotieteellinen tiedekunta fi
ethesis.faculty Faculty of Social Sciences en
ethesis.faculty Statsvetenskapliga fakulteten sv
ethesis.faculty.URI http://data.hulib.helsinki.fi/id/6affe131-10ad-46a1-a7d8-df872797d4a8
ethesis.university.URI http://data.hulib.helsinki.fi/id/50ae46d8-7ba9-4821-877c-c994c78b0d97
ethesis.university Helsingin yliopisto fi
ethesis.university University of Helsinki en
ethesis.university Helsingfors universitet sv
dct.creator Mut-Tracy, Senni
dct.issued 2022 und
dct.abstract Integration in the field of defence and security policy was long regarded unlikely by integration theorists, but the European Union’s competences in the policy area have gradually expanded. The recent launch of the European Defence Fund (EDF) illustrates an ambitious supranational policy being put forward under the Commission’s political leadership. This study investigates why Member States decided to accept the proposal for establishing the EDF and transfer sovereign powers to a supranational institution. To understand their decision, I analyze the negotiations and decision-making process from the perspective of three different Member States: Germany, Greece, and Sweden. This thesis provides an empirical contribution to the study of EU defence–industrial integration and follows a limited number of studies in addressing the question of why such integration is welcomed by Member States. Prior research has suggested that economic gains were the primary motive for accepting the EDF’s precursor program ─ the Preparatory Action on Defence Research (PADR) ─ and building on these findings, I explore whether cost-benefit calculations also led Member States to accept the EDF. The explanatory power of another logic of political action will also be considered, namely that of rule following. This perspective allows for analyzing the significance of the institutional context and rules guiding appropriate behavior. In order to build a case study tracing the decision-making process, I gathered data through semi-structured interviews with government officials involved in the process and researchers familiar with national negotiating positions. Additional material used for this study includes Council meeting documents related to the EDF, European Council conclusions, Commission press releases and communications, as well as other official statements on the EDF. The case study shows that all the studied countries entered the negotiations with different expectations and that their motives for accepting the EDF differed. A key finding of this study is that Member States did not collectively accept the EDF proposal because of an expected economic benefit. In comparison with the PADR, which Member States perceived as ‘extra funding’ given that the funding came from both unallocated and reallocated funds in the EU budget, the EDF’s funding was separately negotiated in connection with the MFF for 2021-27. Economic motives did inarguably constitute an important reason for many countries including Greece and Germany, but economic rationality cannot explain why Sweden decided to accept the initiative despite the possibility that it could create a 'gap' in the state budget. Sweden’s vote in favor of the EDF can rather be explained through its adherence to community norms and self-identification as a pro-European country supportive of joint research efforts. These findings are significant because they point to a need to expand our understanding of the reasons for why Member States support integration in the policy area. en
dct.subject European Union
dct.subject European Defence Fund
dct.subject defence-industrial policy
ethesis.language.URI http://data.hulib.helsinki.fi/id/languages/eng
ethesis.language englanti fi
ethesis.language English en
ethesis.language engelska sv
ethesis.supervisor Pankakoski, Timo
ethesis.thesistype pro gradu -tutkielmat fi
ethesis.thesistype master's thesis en
ethesis.thesistype pro gradu-avhandlingar sv
ethesis.thesistype.URI http://data.hulib.helsinki.fi/id/thesistypes/mastersthesis
dct.identifier.ethesis E-thesisID:c44b8b28-3541-4b9b-99aa-18441294ed30
ethesis-internal.timestamp.reviewStep 2022-04-14 11:31:38:313
dct.identifier.urn URN:NBN:fi:hulib-202205182047
ethesis.facultystudyline Social Sciences fi
ethesis.facultystudyline Social Sciences en
ethesis.facultystudyline Social Sciences sv
ethesis.facultystudyline.URI http://data.hulib.helsinki.fi/id/SH70_154
ethesis.mastersdegreeprogram Euroopan ja Pohjoismaiden tutkimuksen maisteriohjelma (European and Nordic Studies) fi
ethesis.mastersdegreeprogram Master's Programme in European and Nordic Studies en
ethesis.mastersdegreeprogram Magisterprogrammet i Europa- och Nordenstudier sv
ethesis.mastersdegreeprogram.URI http://data.hulib.helsinki.fi/id/MH70_006

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