After the implementation of ESS, EU has adopted its Integrated Maritime Policy (IMP) in October 2007 with the vision to integrate the various European policies concerning maritime affairs and marine issues as a whole. The integration is crucial to assist good conduct at sea and to combat the transnational threats at sea (Germond and Grove 2010: 16). IMP is a guideline to ensure that the maritime
40 Council of the European Union, A Secure Europe in a Better World: European Security
Strategy, Brussels, 12 December 2003, pp.8.
41 Council of the European Union, Report on the Implementation of the European Security
Strategy: Providing Security in Changing World, Brussels, 11 December 2008, pp. 7.
42 Council of the European Union, Report on the Implementation of the European Security
Strategy: Providing Security in Changing World, Brussels, 11 December 2008, pp. 7.
43 Council of the European Union, Report on the Implementation of the European Security
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security dimension can better address and reaffirm the importance of maritime security dimension in EU’s core interests.
The policy seeks to provide a more coherent approach to maritime issues, with increased coordination between different policy areas. It focuses on issues that do not fall under a single sector-based policy e.g. "blue growth" (economic growth based on different maritime sectors) and issues that require the coordination of different sectors and actors e.g. marine knowledge. Specifically it covers these cross-cutting policies: (i) blue growth; (ii) marine data and knowledge; (iii) maritime spatial planning; (iv) integrated maritime surveillance; and (v) sea basin strategies.44 Since its creation in 2007, the Integrated Maritime Policy has sought to enhance the sustainable development of the European maritime economy and to better protect the marine environment by facilitating the cooperation of all maritime players across sectors and borders (Schafer 2009: 1).
The IMP was created to reassure that maritime dimension has become one of the crucial attentions of European Union. IMP was initially set out ocean governance related principles and focused only on trade and fisheries, leaving behind the maritime security dimension (Kraska and Pedrozo 2013: 62). Nonetheless, adoption of IMP indicates the EU’s efforts to include the maritime dimension in its security policy, as they never had done before. IMP works as a cardinal platform to ensure stability and sustainability in Europe. The Commission is preparing to provide the best conditions for sustainable economic development to come from the sea. Building on those achievements, Blue Growth is the objective for the coming years. Blue Growth will drive a second phase of the IMP to achieve a healthy maritime economy that delivers innovation, growth and sustainability for European citizens.
The Blue Books has a limited approach to maritime security and is limited only to trade and fisheries. Nonetheless, one of the main principles in the Blue Books highlights the importance of an interoperable maritime surveillance system
44European Commission, Integrated Maritime Policy (Available at:
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(Kraska and Pedrozo 2013: 62). At the European level, they are committed to enhance inter-agency cooperation among the member states and related agencies especially in the use of a tracking system used together for marine environmental protection and also for maritime migration (Kraska and Pedrozo 2013: 63). In order to counter the illegal maritime trafficking in people and drugs at sea, coordinated maritime surveillance is vital to achieve effective implementation. 4.5.3 European Union Maritime Security Strategy (EUMSS)
EU places great emphasis on strengthening the cooperative tools in the Mediterranean to maintain good order at sea. Following the adoption of ESS and IMP, in order to better strengthen the cooperation and achieve tangible results, the EU has endorsed the EU Maritime Security Strategy (EUMSS) in 2014 to enhance their efforts to complement existing cooperative tools which are already in force. The EUMSS was adopted as a result of a longer process which mainly shaped by the Integrated Maritime Policy (IMP) adopted in 2007 (Carrera and Hertog 2015: 14). EUMSS was adopted to identify the maritime interests of the EU such as prevention of conflicts, protection of critical infrastructure, effective control of external borders to help secure the Union’s maritime external borders, the protection of the global trade support chain and the prevention of illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing.45 The new strategy was also developed to address the risks and threats the EU and its citizens may be confronted with: territorial maritime disputes, maritime piracy, terrorism against ships and ports or other critical infrastructure, migration flows, organised sea-borne crime and trafficking, as well as potential impacts of natural disasters or extreme events.46
EUMSS highlighted the strategy to protect the international maritime domain, notably the safety of shipping lanes from any potential risks or threats. The Mediterranean Sea provides the vital oil lifeline to Western Europe and North America and exposes the strait’s users to numerous maritime threats (Anderson
45 Council of the European Union, European Union Maritime Security Strategy. Brussels, 24 June
2014, pp. 1.
46 Council of the European Union, European Union Maritime Security Strategy. Brussels, 24 June
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and Fenech 1994: 14). The principles and objectives of the EUMSS will be embedded in the existing and future regional EU strategies where it covers each of the European sea and subsea basins, including Mediterranean Sea.47
In order to work towards a coordinated approach on maritime security issues in an international fora and with third countries, EUMSS through its Action Plan, puts into practice four leading principles: a cross sectoral approach, functional integrity, respect for rules and principles, and maritime multilateralism- including the decision-making autonomy of the EU.48 The Action Plan plays important roles as it underlines all the regulations for the member states and relevant EU bodies and agencies. The agency that leads most of the initiatives of the EUMSS is the European External Action Services (EEAS).
EUMSS through its Action Plan also highlighted strategies on maritime awareness, surveillance and information sharing. Under this strategy, the EU seeks to establish comprehensive ‘maritime awareness’ on maritime surveillance and maritime security to improve the effectiveness in responding towards any early warnings on danger at sea.49 To assure the success of this strategy, relevant EU agencies were invited to facilitate inter-agency coordination and cooperation, as well as to develop common maritime awareness among them. The relevant EU agencies involved including European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA), European Fisheries Control Agency (EFCA), Frontex, European Defense Agency (EDA), and Europol.50 All the agencies will coordinate to improve the information exchange and optimise the effectiveness of maritime surveillance. Information sharing is crucial in order to ensure all the respective agencies are responsible for their own designated tasks. This will increase situational awareness and reaction capability at the external border of the member states for
47 Council of the European Union, European Union Maritime Security Strategy. Brussels, 24 June
2014, pp. 3.
48 Council of the European Union, European Union Maritime Security Strategy (EUMSS)-Action
Plan, Brussels, 16 December 2014, pp. 2.
49 Council of the European Union, European Union Maritime Security Strategy (EUMSS)-Action
Plan, Brussels, 16 December 2014, pp. 8.
50 Council of the European Union, European Union Maritime Security Strategy (EUMSS)-Action
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immediate response in detecting, preventing and combatting cross-border crime and irregular migration, as well as attempting to ensure the safety of migrants.
EUMSS aims to address the maritime issue as a whole, with the adoption of an Action Plan as its main driver. It aims to deliver cross-sectoral actions in a comprehensive and coordinated approach, with the cooperation from all major actors in the global maritime domain. Relevant actors at EU and member state level should play their respective roles to ensure that operations align with the provided strategies. EUMSS, which was adopted after several processes of predecessor strategies, indicates the readiness and commitment of the EU to tackle the proliferation of maritime security challenges. EUMSS is believed to be the stepping-stones towards providing the sustainable growth of the maritime realm, not only for the EU but also the member states and international fora.