ТHE EUROPEAN DEFENCE FUND

BJELICA VLAJIĆ Iris (Ministarstvo odbrane Republike Srbije), iris_bjelica_vlajic@yahoo.com

The effort of the European Union (EU) to strengthen its security, defence, and defence capacities in such a way that they can act independently of external factors such as the United States (US) is of crucial importance for the entire European continent. The beginning of the operation of the European Defence Fund, intended for the coordination and increase of investments in the defence purposes of the EU member states, marks a new stage in the development of its Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP), as well as its attempt to become independent from non-European suppliers and resources. The development of modern international relations in which the EU has a prominent role, however, did not lead to changes in the EU\'s positioning towards the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) since both organisations share the same values and the EU still relies on NATO\'s defence capabilities. It certainly has a particular significance for the EU\'s relationship with third countries that are candidates for its membership. Thus, the candidate countries are expected to comply with the institutional framework set by the CSDP. The Republic of Serbia has precisely defined obligations in this regard. Although it does not have the possibility of using funds from the European Defence Fund, the Republic of Serbia, based on the contract with the European Defence Agency (EDA), has the possibility of better understanding and involvement in research on new technologies of importance for European security.

Keywords: European Defence Fund, CSDP, EU