The European project which has brought unprecedented peace, prosperity and democracy is being questioned. To the East, the European security order has been violated, while terrorism and violence plague North Africa and the Middle East, as well as Europe itself. Yet these are also times of extraordinary opportunity. Global Growth, mobility, and technological progress – alongside our deepening partnerships- enable us to thrive, and allow ever more people to escape poverty and live longer and freer lives.
The EU Global Strategy sets out the EU's core interests and principles for engaging in the wider world and gives the Union a collective sense of direction. Its ambition is to make Europe stronger: an even more united and influential actor on the world stage that keeps citizens safe, preserves our interests, and upholds our values. To confront new challenges and keep us safe we need a response that combines internal and external policies. The EU Global Strategy helps makes our Union more effective in confronting energy security, migration, climate change, violent extremism, and hybrid warfare. Because none of our countries can tackle these challenges alone, we are taking steps to solve them together. We will navigate this difficult, more connected contested and complex world guided by our shared interests and principles. We will stand united in building a stronger Europe.
From Vision to Action - Strategic Priorities of the EU Global Strategy
The EU Global Strategy seeks to turn vision into common action. In October 2016 EU Foreign ministers decided on the most important strategic priorities for implementing the EU Global Strategy (Council Conclusions in October 2016). These priorities are security and defence, building state and societal resilience, taking an integrated approach to conflicts and crises, strenghtening cooperative regional orders and a rules-based global governance.