From markets to missiles? Understanding the European Commission’s role in EU Security and defence politics

This project investigates the European Commission’s role in EU security and defence politics. Despite the policy area’s longstanding intergovernmental character and limited supranational involvement, the Commission has taken on an increasingly active role since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine and the second inauguration of Trump. The new development thus raises a central puzzle: Why does the Commission play an increased role in security- and defence politics, even though it is a deeply ingrained national competence of member states? Existing studies often assume that the Commission seeks to expand its power or simply coordinates member state preferences. Yet we know surprisingly little about how the Commission itself understands this role, or how governance dynamics and culture are shifting internally in light of the new geopolitical context. To address this gap, the project asks in a monograph: 1) How is EU security and defense governance dynamics changing within the Commission in light of a new geopolitical reality? 2) How do Commission officials construct, legitimize and practice their role(s) in this sensitive member state area?, and 3) How is this role shaped by its interactions with other security actors? Methodologically, the project employs an interpretive approach with the use of a qualitative multi-method design that combines ethnographic fieldwork, expert interviews, and documents. The core of the research is a three-month participation observation within the Directorate-General for Defence Industry and Space (DG DEFIS) combined with a shadowing of selected officials in the cabinet. This approach will allow for unique real-time insights into the Commission’s work culture, behavior and interactions with other institutional actors. Additional expert interviews will be conducted in 2025 and 2026. Theoretically, the project takes an abductive approach drawing from literature on organizational culture, international relations and integration theories. By opening ‘the black box’ of the Commission, the project offers not only a detailed empirical account of an understudied policy shift but also contributes to broader debates on European Commission governance. I will present a fitting book-chapter from my monograph.