Dnevnik reflects on EU’s strategic autonomy

Ljubljana – The newspaper Dnevnik writes about “mouse steps” the EU is making toward its strategic autonomy in Saturday’s commentary whose headline says the same.

“This week the contours of a new European policy have emerged. It began with the interior ministers who with their reflex of defenders of European borders and security announced they would prevent attempts at illegal migration from Afghanistan.

“The union will obviously take a selective approach to their protection – the countries that will be prepared to accept the most vulnerable groups will be able to do so. Selective solidarity in the contractual Union of shared values is thus not changing, something that an integration that wants to be a global player cannot be proud of.

“Somewhat bigger but still mouse steps happened in the EU’s defence and foreign policy. The Union has started coyly eyeing hard power. With a revival of ideas about Europe’s greater military capability for crisis response – let it be new rapid reaction units or a more efficient decision-making to deploy already formed but never used units – the 27 nation bloc is starting making steps toward grater strategic autonomy, but is not giving up alliance with the US.

“Setting its new terms to increase cooperation with the Taliban too shows a new pragmatic realisation that it will be necessary to cooperate with the new government in Afghanistan. The idea that the EU could pressure the Taliban government by making development aid to the country conditional to force the new government to respect human rights is not fully thought-through. Financial aid is namely already being transferred from Beijing.”

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