ABSTRACT
The Common Security and Defence Policy is very specific compared to other EU external relations tools. The difference does not necessarily stem from the decision-making procedure, because unanimity is generally the rule in all of the Common Foreign and Security Policy as well as on other issues. Rather, the CSDP is the policy area where the EU is most dependent on its member states, their capabilities, and their willingness to commit themselves beyond the general consensus in the Council. Due to the fact that the EU does not possess any military or civilian capabilities, the personnel under the EU flag can be deployed only when member states pledge sufficient forces (for which they must pay) and sufficient financial resources to cover common costs (for military operations, not for the civilian missions where the common costs are covered from the EU budget) on top of reaching political agreement on the mission. This showed most painfully in the case of the EU military operations in Chad and the Central African Republic, where five force generating conferences were necessary to gather enough capabilities to launch the mission in 2008 (Helly, 2009).
