Looking Back to Move Ahead: Assessing the Long-Term Impact of the Common Security and Defence Policy Civilian Missions

Abstract Since 2003, in the framework of the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP), the European Union (EU) has deployed a growing number of crisis management missions, mostly civilian ones, in many countries and with different purposes: from support to police and security sectors, strengthening and reforming the rule of law, assistance to customs and boundaries etc. EU civilian missions are in charge of rebuilding or reforming a country’s security sector according to European standard, values and practices. Given the EU’s declared support of local ownership, the main aim of this research project has been to evaluate civilian missions’ long term impact on the ground. The objectives of this project have been twofold: looking at the long term effects generated by EU engagement in the targeted countries and examining whether these reforms are sustainable or not and why. In order to assess impact, this research has taken into account the concepts of effectiveness and sustinability and it has analysed the perspectives of the EU- namely officials’ observations and opinions on the effects accomplished, and that of the beneficiary country, i.e. local authorities’ expectations and their points of view. Three missions have been chosen as case studies: EUPM (Bosnia-Herzegovina), EUJUST Themis (Georgia) and EULEX (Kosovo). The first two are completed missions (one has been a long mission, the other a short one); while the latter is still ongoing and thus it provideS an opportunity to examine how the EU works to increase the sustainability of reforms implemented and incorporating previous lessons learned. Beginning with an overview of the CSDP, then the research focused on the notion of impact and how it can be evaluated. At the same time, the thesis analysed the existing state of the art concerning EU missions evaluation, in order to stress key gaps in the literature and in the field. Later, the project concentrated on the analysis of the case studies by applying the criteria of effectiveness and sustainability and conducting qualitative interviews. Finally, conclusions summed up the main findings related to the issue of impact evaluation in CSDP missions and to the analysis of the case studies, evidencing light and shadows.