Part I: The EU Internal - External Security Nexus -- Soft Power, European Security Strategy and Radicalism: Cultural, Religious and Dimensional Challenges -- The Strategic Context of the European Security and Defence Policy -- Securitization: Theoretical Underpinnings and Implications -- Small EU Member States and the European Security and Defence Integration -- Part II: EU Operations: From the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) to the European External Action Service (EEAS) -- EU Peace Operations in a Changing World: A Multilayer Evaluation -- European Participation in International Operations: National Decision-Making and the Role of EU Institutions -- The European External Action Service: An Encompassing and Adaptive Agency at the Service of the EU Global Security Strategy? -- The Evolving Role of FRONTEX in Implementing an EU Comprehensive Approach on Security -- The Role of the European Commission / DG ECHO in Crisis Response and Institutional Cooperation for an EU Comprehensive Approach -- Part III: EU, Russia and Transatlantic Challenges -- Russia's Challenges to International Security and the Western Response -- West v. Russia: A Role for Diplomacy -- Transatlantic Relations at a Time of Uncertainty: The Formation of Transatlantic Axis -- Augmenting European Security and Defence: A Multiple Challenge for the EU -- NATO Security Challenges.