Annual Programmes

 

Objective

The European Diplomatic Programme (EDP) is a result of the work done in the late 1990’s in the Council working group on administration and protocol (COADM). The objective was to create a training programme that would promote the idea of common European diplomacy. The guidelines and the curriculum for the EDP were approved by the Council’s Political Committee in 1999-2000. EDP is a common project between the EU Member States and EU Institutions. It is part of the EU Common Foreign and Security Policy. In practice the EDP is executed by the Member States’ Foreign Ministries, the EEAS, the Commission and the Council Secretariat. The programme has three general aims :

•  help European diplomats create networks that foster a European identity in foreign policy; 
•  raise awareness among national diplomats with regard to the specifically European dimension of diplomacy; 
•  provide a teaching environment whose framework transcends the strictly national.

 

The twelfth EDP started in Warsaw in September 2011 and finished in Copenhagen in June  2012. The next edition starts in Limassol in September 2012 and finishes  in Ireland in June 2013.

Structure and participants

EDP participants are young diplomats from Member States and officials of the European External Action Service, the European Commission and the Council Secretariat.

The EDP is composed of 5 modules. Each year, an overall theme is chosen for the EDP. The themes covered so far are:

• "Western Balkans" (2001-2002);
• "The Enlargement" (2002-2003);
• "Wider Europe – European Neighbourhood Policy" (2003-2004);
• "European Security Strategy" (2004-2005);
• "EU - Transatlantic relations" (2005-2006);
• "EU’s relations to China and India" (2006-2007);
• "Population flows, development and security in Africa: challenges for and responses by the EU" (2007-2008)
• "Neighbourhood policy and energy challenge : two priority issues for the EU" (2008-2009)
• "EU-Transatlantic relations" (2009-2010);
• "New systemic challenges for the EU: external action coherence" (2010-2011)
• "Europe and its neighbours" (2011-2012)
• "The European Union and the Strategic Partnerships" (2012- 2013)

Further Information

For further information about the selection procedure in your own Member State, please address yourself to your own Foreign Affairs Ministry.