The European Union as Security Community‐Building Institution: Venues, Networks and Co‐operative Security Practices

How does the E uropean U nion promote security beyond its borders? This article answers this seemingly straightforward question by exploring how the EU works as security community‐building institution vis‐à‐vis non‐members. Drawing upon practice theory in I nternational R elations, the article unpacks the security community concept, focusing especially on the relation between co‐operative security practices and the expansion of security communities. The article discusses how recent practice‐inspired insights can be applied in empirical research to generate novel and interesting results of relevance for EU studies. It does so by recapitulating the main findings from a study on S panish‐ M oroccan co‐operation on civilian and military crisis management. The findings support the claim that common practice precedes collective identity in processes of security community‐building in that the EU has helped bring together and perpetuate a community of security practitioners in the western M editerranean that builds upon, as well as transcends, already existing bilateral relations.