Civilian Crisis Management of the European Union in Georgia

This project examines closely the involvement of the European Union in the resolution of the conflict in Georgia, especially in Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Civilian crisis management operations are conducted under the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CSDP) of the EU. To this end, first the general framework regarding operations in the area of CSDP is presented and analysed. This encompasses amongst others the historical development of this relatively young policy area, legal basis, the institutional set-up, decision-making bodies and procedures as well as the planning process for civilian crisis management operations. Moreover, the project addresses issues regarding the deployment and control mechanisms in the implementation phase as well as the role of the European Court of Justice in foreign policy matters and current challenges the EU is facing in this area. Throughout this process, the changes brought by the Treaty of Lisbon in the field of CSDP are highlighted. Furthermore, the specific crisis-management operations of the EU in Georgia and the context in which they were deployed are explored, namely EUJUST Themis in 2004, the Independent International Fact Finding Mission on the Conflict in Georgia and the EU Monitoring Mission (EUMM) for Georgia in 2008. In this regard, the project focuses on particularities of the decision-making process as well as the mandate of the Missions and its implementation. Finally, cooperation and coordination between the different EU actors as well as the cooperation with other international actors are taken into account.

Promotor: Prof. Dr. Alexander Blankenagel, Humboldt University of Berlin
Researcher: Alina Christova

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