European Security: Lithuania

European Security: Lithuania

Gintautas Buzinskas

European security constitutes a major issue of the European Union’s leg­islation in the area of freedom, security and justice. New competences are allocated to the Community and Union in this field. Fulfillment of Euro­pean legislation requires the adaptation of the Member State’s structures and the mobilization of national legal means. It will be necessary to ex­amine the European achievements in the field of security, their European and International dimension, the implementation of European legislation and the limitation of Member States’ autonomy in this sensible area of na­tional sovereignty. European security thus raises questions relating to the nature and the extent of Community and Union competence, to the conse­quences of the exercise of this competence on the Member States’ status. At the same time, the question is to know if the cross-pillar character of security issues affects the coherence of the Union’s action and to what ex­tent European security can be a tool of assertion of its identity. But apart from the institutional aspects, it will be necessary to examine the impact of the realization of the European area of security on the protection of fun­damental rights and freedoms.

The following questionnaire includes three chapters: The European Com­munity and Union competence in the field of European security / The implementation of the European legislation / The respect of fundamental rights. It is obvious that this division is intended to serve the objective of systematization, without influencing the angle under which the national rapporteurs will handle the question. National rapporteurs are invited to deal with the institutional adaptations in their country, but also with the position of scholarship, national case law or their own position on the questions concerned with the area of security. In addition the general rap­porteur would welcome other issues, not referred to in the questionnaire, which national rapporteurs consider relevant, and would encourage the ex­change of views.