继欧元问世之后,建设一支独立的军事力量已经成为欧盟一体化的当务之急和重点之一。长期以来,欧盟由于没有自己独立的军事防务力量而被视为“经济上的巨人、政治上的矮子、军事上的侏儒”。如今,欧盟宣布了组建欧洲快速反应部队的初步计划,这是欧盟在依赖了北约和美国数十年后,开始朝着独立实施危机控制、维持和平以及救援行动迈出的关键性一步。它不仅证明了欧盟在经济上的强大,同时也表明其在防务上开始摆脱美国的控制,走上自主的道路。 Following the advent of the euro, building an independent military force has become a top priority and one of the priorities of the EU’s integration. For a long time, the EU has been regarded as “an economic giant, a political dwarf, and a military dwarf because it does not have its own independent military defense force.” Today, the EU announced a preliminary plan to set up a rapid reaction force in Europe, which is a crucial step for the EU to embark on its crisis control, peacekeeping and rescue operations independently after relying on NATO and the United States for decades. It not only shows that the EU is economically strong, but also shows that it has begun to emerge from the control of the United States in defense affairs and embark on an independent road.