Raisons d'État. EU Security and Defence Policy Framework in the Context of Polish and German Interests. An Analysis

The asymmetry of the cultures of security and different levels of perception of security interests in their direct international environment remains (for now) an insurmountable obstacle for Germany and Poland. Europe is facing new challenges, the establishment of new powers and the decline of traditional state structures, which is confronting it with threats aimed at weakening the European value system, democratic frameworks, the rule of law and the protection of human rights. Europe is losing to the rest of the world in terms of demographics, economy and politics, and faces more and more obstacles in establishing alliances for the purpose of the development and maintenance of prosperity. For the European Union, this is a source of potential internal and external conflicts. Differences in the external activities of the European Union will hinder it from playing the role of a unified, responsible, international force in the future. It will therefore not be able to create enough political will to establish a European Foreign, Security and Defence Policy. On the contrary, the possibility of degradation of the achieved potential for unification in the form of the EU's Common Foreign, Security and Defence Policy must be taken into account. In such case, could Poland and Germany take the lead on European defence policy?(original abstract