To tackle transboundary crises, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, the EU seeks effective coordination between its Member States. However, the COVID-19 crisis response in the EU proved uncoordinated...Show moreTo tackle transboundary crises, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, the EU seeks effective coordination between its Member States. However, the COVID-19 crisis response in the EU proved uncoordinated and inconsistent. The EU lacks regulatory power to oblige states to act. It is therefore dependent on the states' willingness to cooperate. This cooperation is essential as the EU exists for similar cross border challenges. Both effective crisis response and EU relevance depend on efficient coordination in the EU. Successful securitisation of a phenomenon can increase the cooperation of Member States. Thus, this study investigates how the EU framed COVID-19 as a threat to the EU Member States. Specifically, this study analyses to what extent the EU securitised COVID-19 until 15 April 2020. Securitisation is a theoretical framework developed by the Copenhagen School to explore how political matters become security issues through the use of security language. Discourse analysis, a qualitative research approach, allowed for exploring the securitisation of COVID-19 in speeches and statements by the European Commission. Coding the documents provided a systematic overview of the methods employed to frame COVID-19 as an external threat to the EU. The results demonstrate three main approaches utilised to convey the threat: a) linguistically implying unification before framing COVID-19 as an external threat to the union; b) indicating seriousness and urgency through vocabulary choices; and c) stressing the importance less directly through extensive use of idioms. In conclusion, the EU securitised COVID-19 to a large and varied extent. The question remains whether the securitising moves were adequate, as the EU crisis response proved uncoordinatedShow less
