The EU, NATO and European defence – A slow train coming

This Occasional Paper is devoted to the proposals on European defence under discussion during the 2008 French EU Presidency and examines specific initiatives for a stronger, more unitary European security structure. The paper provides a fresh analysis of relations between Europe and America during the second Bush administration (2005-09). It also focuses on both the limits and opportunities of EU-NATO cooperation and suggests where improvements might be made, particularly at the working/operative level.