Die Anwendbarkeit und Durchsetzbarkeit der Unionsgrundrechte bei militärischen Operationen der Europäischen Union

The EU is involved in several civilian and military operations around the world. Since the EU’s Fundamental Rights Charter (CFR) became legally binding, the question of the responsibility of observing human rights and how this responsibility can be enforced has arisen, especially concerning military operations. This study examines this complex line of questioning, which relates to Public International Law and European Union Law, in all its dimensions: the commitment of the EU and its member states to the CFR, the extraterritorial applicability of the CFR, the problem of multiple commitments (to the CFR, ECHR and national constitutions) and enforcing the protection of fundamental rights. Furthermore, the study applies the results of its research to a case which occurred during Operation Atalanta (a counter-piracy operation at sea off the Horn of Africa).