The master's thesis explores the evolution of European strategic autonomy as an instrument utilised by the EU member states in line with self-help balancing strategies as conceptualised by defensive neorealism. The concept has gained increasing prominence in academic and political debates within the context of the EU's development of a common security and defence dimension. The gradual multipolarisation of the international system, reflected in the relative decline of power of the United States and European states alongside the rise of China and Russia’s revisionist ambitions, constitutes a transformation of the systemic structure and generates new security challenges for Europe. The thesis analyses the manifestations of this process after 2014, including the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, the growing systemic challenge of China, and the retrenchment of U.S. security guarantees for the Union. Accordingly, the study aims to investigate the causal relationship between systemic changes and the responses of EU member states, as evidenced by strengthened military capabilities and enhanced security cooperation. The deepening of European strategic autonomy is analysed across four dimensions: capabilities, institutional, industrial, and political autonomy. The development of capabilities and, in part, industrial autonomy is assessed quantitatively through the evaluation of empirical data on defence and industrial capacities, while institutional and political autonomy are operationalised qualitatively through an analysis of the formation of European legal framework, strategic documents, and political practices.
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