Navigating Overlaps: State Motivations and the Evolving Relationship Between the European Union and NATO : A Case Study of Finland and Sweden

Abstract: The EU has for a long time been moving towards taking more responsibility for its own security through the creation of programmes such as the Common Defence and Security Policy (CSDP) and the European Defence Fund. Increased uncertainty regarding security has caused many states to reconsider their defence arrangements, especially internationally. NATO, the long-established security provider in the transatlantic region, and the EU are seeing a greater functional overlap, which comes with a number of drawbacks. NATO is also concerned with a potential decrease in United States engagement in European security, which can ultimately lead to a so-called discontinuity challenge among the European States. Finland and Sweden have recently abandoned their military non-alignment for membership in NATO. This begs the question of why these states join NATO when they are already part of the EU’s CSDP and how these two states view the functional relationship between the EU and NATO. The study shows that both Finland and Sweden see the EU and NATO as having complementary roles and that cooperation between them should only be increased. Both organizations are seen as necessary for European security. Two of the main motivations for joining NATO are the increased aggression from Russia as well as being a way to improve relations with the US and maintain US engagement in European security.