Europeans have been spending increasingly less on defense. This trend is puzzling on two accounts. Empirically, 30% of defense spending cuts correlated with a net increase in military capacity, contradicting conventional predictions of military degradation under budgetary pressures. Theoretically, it is unclear why cuts happen and whether conscious policy choices can translate spending cuts to favorable military capacity outcomes. Is the decline in defense spending a strategic choice to demilitarize, or is it intentionally managed to improve military capacity? I evaluate three conditions under which reductions in military expenditures can lead to favorable outcomes in military capacity: defense reform, defense collaboration and buck-passing. I investigate 30 defense spending cut periods (DSCP’s) in the 27 European states between 2000 and 2012. This group of states presents a hard case for my argument: decline in European military resources is most-likely intentional. Through Qualitative Comparative Analysis, I group DSCP’s by military capacity outcomes. I then evaluate presence of the three mechanisms by operationalizing necessary but insufficient conditions, and determine whether these potential explanations are sufficient by process-tracing select case studies. I find that defense reform presents the most compelling, collective collaboration less compelling and buck-passing least compelling explanation of a potentially non-detrimental relationship between DSCP’s and military capacity. Under declining defense spending, governments routinely chose to produce savings by eliminating redundancies, consolidating structures, and reinvested savings in operational readiness and quality of military forces. States increased defense collaboration in 47.3% of the DSCP’s, but initiatives still appear divorced from affecting robust military improvements at the national level. Under declining defense spending, buck-passing increased only modestly (8%-13%), with ongoing deployments supporting continued investment in the military. These findings imply that defense spending decline does not mean a European choice to demilitarize, but a choice to reform, sometimes in tandem with defense collaboration or buck-passing.

Since the establishment of the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) in 1991, the European Union has quickly been developing as an international security and defense actor. However, the fall of Yugoslavia exposed the EU's shortcomings regarding its foreign policy initiatives. Its failure in the region became a turning point for EU foreign and security policy decision making. Since the crisis in Yugoslavia, the EU has been able to overcome national interests, political disagreements, and failed operations to establish itself as a powerful actor in the international community. It has been able to display its military capability as well as bring political stability to troubled areas around the world. This thesis explores the history of European foreign policy decision-making as well as the difficulties associated with its development. The goal of this research is to determine what effect the crisis in Yugoslavia has had on the European Union's Common Foreign and Security Policy. I analyze the policies and actions of the European Union towards the Western Balkans as well as the development of the EU's foreign and security policy since the crisis in Yugoslavia ended. This research will provide an explanation as to how the European Union was able to recover from its failure in Yugoslavia by creating its own military capability, increasing cohesiveness among its member-states, and eventually improving its status in the international community.

The study examines Turkey&rsquo / s responses in the face of the formation of European Security and Defense Policy (ESDP). The political responses over ESDP have two dimensions. From the viewpoint of Turkey, at the beginning she intended to participate in the process of decision making structure of the ESDP. Therefore, it can be concluded that Turkey is not against the formation of the ESDP. However, as a non-EU European NATO member, Turkey&rsquo / s integration into European security and defense was welcomed but she was excluded from the strategic decision making structure of ESDP. As a result of this, formation of ESDP undermined the position of Turkey who has rights inherited over European security from Western European Union Associate and NATO Memberships. As Turkey was excluded from the decision making structure of ESDP, she put reservations to the EU-NATO cooperation as a NATO member. Secondly, from the viewpoint of European Union, she is trying to keep the decision making authority of ESDP in EU itself by excluding non-EU European states. Besides, Turkey&rsquo / s full integration into European Security and Defense Policy was made contingent to the Turkey&rsquo / s European Union membership. Turkey&rsquo / s EU membership process should not be linked with her full participation, including decision making structure of the ESDP. European defense developments were considered to be as a challenge to NATO and US superiority in Europe. Developments in European defense and Turkey&rsquo / s participation in this process were also examined in this study.

Cette thèse consiste à expliquer les lacunes que connait le droit français en matière d'auto-incrimination. Cette notion est inexistante en france et ne permet pas d'assurer aux justiciables un respect des droits de la défense affirmé. En effet, l'absence de ce droit au sein du code de procédure pénale ou de tout autre texte français, pose difficultés car les droits de la défense ne sont pas pleinement garantis. Certains mécanismes sont donc validés alors qu'ils sont attentatoires. Il est impératif que cette notion, avec tous les aspects qu'elle englobe soit prise en compte en droit français. Si le système américain et canadien le privilégie tant c'est bien que ce droit de ne pas s'auto-incriminer requiert un développement approfondi. Il sera également important d'observer comment le doit pénal français tente de le contourner, notamment au regard de certaines alternatives au jugement tel que le plea-bargaining. La question sera donc de se demander s'il est préférable de privilégier une atteinte aux droits de la défense ou la peine qui peut en découler. / This thesis consists of explaining the shortcomings of French law in self-incrimination. This notion is non-existent in France and does not ensure that litigants respect the rights of the defense asserted. Indeed, the absence of this right in the Code of Criminal Procedure or any other French text poses difficulties because the rights of the defense are not fully guaranteed. Some mechanisms are validated while they are detrimental. It is imperative that this notion, with all the aspects it encompasses, be taken into account in French law. If the American and Canadian system privileges it so much it is good that this right not to incriminate itself requires a deep development. It will also be important to observe how the French criminal law attempts to circumvent it, especially with regard to some alternatives to judgment such as plea-bargaining. The question will therefore be whether it is preferable to favor an infringement of the rights of the defense or the sentence that may result from it

Cette thèse propose un modèle théorique capable de rendre compte du passage d'un système international à un système interne. Elle s'appuie sur des études empiriques empruntées à l'histoire de l'intégration européenne. Son modèle est fondé sur deux facteurs principaux : la balance entre offensive et défensive et le degré d'interdépendance entre acteurs. Lorsque l'offensive a l'avantage, les acteurs sont incités à résoudre leurs problèmes d'interdépendance via l'usage de la violence, qui s'avère efficace. Ce n'es que lorsque la défense a l'avantage que l'interdépendance peut conduire à l'intégration. Cependant, cette condition n'est pas suffisante. Lorsque l'interdépendance est faible, les acteurs cherchent à la limiter en vue de préserver leur indépendance. Ce n'est que lorsque la défense a l'avantage et que l'interdépendance est prépondérante et incontournable que l'intégration peut être une solution viable. Ce modèle est utilisé pour expliquer le passage d'une stratégie traditionnelle d'indépendance à une politique de délégation à des institutions supranationales, à travers trois catégories d'acteurs: les gouvernements, les parlementaires et le juges. L'intégration gouvernementale est étudiée à travers les origines de la Communauté européenne du charbon et de l'acier (1951) et l'échec de la Communauté européenne de défense (1954). L'intégration parlementaire est étudiée à travers les premiers renforcements du Parlement européen en matière budgétaire (1970) et législative (1986). Enfin, l'intégration juridique est étudiée à travers l'évolution des juridictions allemandes et françaises quant à la reconnaissance de la primauté du droit communautaire. / This thesis proposes a theoretical framework able to account for the transition from an international system to a domestic one. It relies on empirical studies from the history of European integration. Its model is based on two principal factors: the offense-defense balance and the degree of interdependence among actor When offense has the advantage, incentives drive the actors to solve their interdependence problems by usin violence because it is quite effective. It is only when defense has the advantage that interdependence can lead to integration. However, that latter condition is not sufficient. When interdependence is weak, actors see to limit it, to preserve their independence. It is only when defense has the advantage and interdependence is overwhelming and unavoidable, that integration becomes a viable solution. This model was applied to explain the transition from a traditional independence-preserving strategy to a delegation-of-powers policy in favor of supranational institutions, by examining three categories of actors: governments, members of parliaments an judges. The origins of the European Coal and Steel Community (1951) and the failure of the European Defense Corn munit y (1954) were used to investigate governmental integration. The first reinforcements of the European Parliament conceming budgetary (1970) and legislative matters (1986) served to study parliamentary integration. lastly, the analysis of judicial integration was explored through the evolution of German and French national courts towards the aeee tance of the su remac of Communit law.

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Diploma thesis "European collaborative defense projects and the military capacity of the EU" is dealing with the realization of cooperative projects and with their influence on the development of military capacities of the European Union member states. The author examines the economic and military advantages of international defense collaboration. The optimal way of collaboration leads to lower development and production costs, higher quality of the product and better competitiveness on the market. The author uses selected European programs to test how the results are achieved in reality. Further author identifies the goals of the European Defense and Security Policy as they were set up by the European Union. Mainly the so called Petersberg Tasks. The author examines which military capabilities the European Union needs to build in order to realize the full scope of the Petersberg Tasks and whether the realized collaborative projects enhance the capabilities of the Union for these tasks.