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This research explores how the EU employs Cyber Capacity Building as a tool for geopolitical interests in neighboring regions.

April 22, 2026

Cybersecurity at the Borders: The EU’s Differentiated Approaches to Cyber Capacity Building in Its Neighbours

Key Points

This research explores how the EU employs Cyber Capacity Building as a tool for geopolitical interests in neighboring regions.
Comparative analysis of EU-funded Cyber Capacity Building projects across three regions: Southern Neighbourhood, Eastern Neighbourhood, and Western Balkans.
Identification of three main scripts in cyber cooperation: law enforcement, governance, and resilience.
The EU's Cyber Capacity Building approach reflects its broader geopolitical and security objectives.
Differentiated strategies indicate the EU's efforts to stabilize border areas and extend regulatory influence.
The findings enhance understanding of the EU's role in global cybersecurity governance.

Abstract

Cyber Capacity Building (CCB) has become a key instrument in the external dimension of the European Union (EU) cybersecurity policies. This paper examines how the EU operationalizes its strategic and geopolitical interests through cyber cooperation with three key neighbouring regions: the Southern Neighbourhood (SN), the Eastern Neighbourhood (EN), and the Western Balkans (WB). Drawing on a comparative analysis of CCB projects funded by the EU and its Member States, the study identifies three differentiated scripts in cyber cooperation: law enforcement, governance, and resilience. The paper argues that the EU’s approach to CCB is strategically instrumentalized and differentiated to reflect broader geopolitical, security, and integration objectives, ranging from stabilizing border regions and managing external threats to extending its regulatory influence. These findings contribute to a better understanding of the EU’s evolving ambition to act as a geopolitical and normative actor in global cybersecurity governance, and they underscore how differentiated regional engagement reflects the EU’s strategic priorities in the digital age.

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