Balancing between integration and autonomy. Understanding the drivers and mechanisms of EUs foreign, security and defense policy.

EUFLEX studerer både hvordan EU, medlemsstatene og assosierte stater, som Norge, balanserer mellom hensynet til å ivareta nasjonal selvbestemmelse (autonomi) på den ene siden, og lojalitet til selve EU-prosjektet i form av integrasjon og tettere samarbeid på den andre innenfor utenriks og sikkerhetspolitikk. Så langt ser vi en utvkling som tyder på mer fleksibel (eller differensiert) integrasjon heller enn mindre på dette området. Men en slik utvikling trenger ikke nødvendigvis å bety en svekkelse av EUs globale rolle. Prosjektgruppen har diskutert dette på fire interne workshops, presentert arbeid på internasjale akademiske konferanser. Det siste året har de fleste fysiske møter blitt kansellert på grunn av pandemien, men disse har blitt erstattet av digitale møter og webinar. Så langt viser vår forskning blant annet hvordan enkelte medlemsland, som Frankrike, ser på fleksibel integrasjon som et strategisk instrument. For assosierte land, som Norge og Storbritannia innebærer dette både utfordringer, men også noen nye muligheter. Vi har også sett på hvordan forsvarspolitikken i EU i økende grad karakteriseres av flere lag av differensiert integrasjon som gjør samarbeidet komplekst, men kanskje også mer fleksibelt. Corona pandemien synes også å ha forsterket tendensen til mer differensiert integrasjon heller enn mindre samtidig som dette ikke nødvendigvis innebærer en svekkelse av EUs globale rolle. Disse hovedfunnene er nå publisert i en spesialutgave i European Foreign Affairs Review og i en rekke enkeltartikler og kapitler. I tillegg ble de presetnert på et seminar på NUPI 30. november. Forskningen vil bli viderført på ulike måter innenfor ulike andre prosjekter i 2022 og fremover.

EUFLEX has contributed empirically and theoretically to the literature on differentiated integration (DI). Our perception is that the decision makers also have found the project output innovative and relevant. A key contribution presenting is a special issue in EFAR,2021, edited by the project leader. These findings have also been dissemination at different events in NUPIs seminar series, "Norway meets Europe", and through op eds and policy briefs. At our final seminar on November 30, where we discussed the results of the project, we had 200 online participants, in addition to those who came to NUPI. We expect that the EUFLEX findings will have an academic impact. Beyond this expected scientific impact, we also believe that we have contributed to a deeper understanding of the drivers and mechanisms in European foreign, security and defence integration among both stakeholders and the general public.

In an international context that is constantly shifting, we need a better understanding of how various global and regional challenges affect Europe. Our starting point is an assumption that global shifts and regional challenges add a completely new dimension to the European decision trap: States, or decision-makers, no longer face only a choice pf how to express their "voice" within Europe and the EU system, but are also increasingly faced with the "exit" option. The aim of EUFLEX is therefore to study the ongoing process towards differentiated integration in the area of European foreign, security and defense policy. More precisely, it aims at studying how the EU, its member states as well as closely associated states, balance between the concerns for preserving national autonomy on the one hand and loyalty to the European integration project on the other in this specific policy field. Balancing between autonomy and integration has been a key question throughout the history of European integration, but it has become more urgent following the British government decision to withdraw from the EU. While the existing literature has focused primarily on why integration takes place in spite of this dilemma, EUFLEX will be more interested in investigating what kind of integration it produces. In the current situation, it is likely that we will see a process of more flexible integration. However, we know little about what it means in practice, and how will it be addressed by different actors and levels of government (the EU, the member states and associated member states). With this EUFLEX aims at contributing both empirically and theoretically to the literature on autonomy and integration. EUFLEX is organized into three overarching thematic areas focusing on how different levels relate to the dilemma of integration and autonomy in the area of foreign policy and diplomatic integration, regional integration and security community building and defence integration.