Mémoire
| Résumé : | This research paper explores the European Union (EU) Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) civilian missions from a Feminist approach. CSDP accords visibility to the EU and provides it with the tools to act on the international scene as a security actor. Its missions and operations are among the most visible EU foreign action instruments, and they are tasked to support partner countries by providing security and the rule of law. The EU is committed to advancing gender equality in its external action through various documents and publications; however, its peacekeeping missions are characterised by consistent gender imbalance. Using Feminist institutional theory and Post-structural Feminist theory, this research paper explores the CSDP as an institution and the EU discourse on security and gender. EU-produced documents, speeches, and promotional materials are studied for research purposes to answer the question of why the EU civilian mission’s personnel is not gender balanced. This paper argues that although EU CSDP is male-dominated, its discourse shows an understanding of the importance of a gender-sensitive approach and the necessity to strive for gender equality. Hence, gender inequality in the CSDP missions is not a result of the EU discourse on security. Other reasons, for example, the Member States’ experts’ contributions or recruitment process could be the causes for the gender inequality in the missions. |
