摘要：The article contextualises the concept of the European army within wider European security and defence discourse. The European Union (EU) is facing complex challenges, which requires a strategic approach to IR. This research examines the EU's strategic posture and capacities in the international arena by employing two leading concepts of IR theory - constructivism and realism. Since the EU operates in an interlinked world, the article takes into account a wider geostrategic environment and heterogeneity of concepts and interests of actors in various pockets of the globe, offering viable future perspectives for the phenomena in its focus. It suggests a functional development of a EU's strategic culture and a fine-tuned reconsideration of its exclusively constructivist approach to contemporary security challenges.
