bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The New GSP+ Beneficiaries: Ticking the Box or Truly Consistent with ILO Findings?
Authors: Tortell Lisa
Published: April 2022

In the past decade, the European Union (EU) has committed itself to promoting the social dimension of globalization, focusing mostly on the promotion of labour standards internationally through increased cooperation with the International Labour Organization (ILO) and by means of its external trade policies. This article addresses these two dimensions of the Union’s global social policies, by examining whether EU practise in Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) labour conditionality has been consistent with ILO assessments. In particular, we utilize a ‘hierarchy of condemnation’ to examine the implementation record of core labour standards (CLS), as evaluated by the ILO committees entrusted with assessing countries’ observance of conventions. This analysis makes clear that, although EU decisions to sanction countries through its GSP scheme are traceable to the level of condemnation by the ILO, consistency between the granting of GSP+ incentives and ILO assessments is less clear-cut and cannot entirely be explained by the EU’s attempts to use GSP+ to stimulate the implementation of CLS. Finally a number of explanations for these findings are given, pointing in particular to path-dependent processes in the EU decision-making system.
The Social Dimension of the New Generation of EU FTAs with Asia and Latin America: Ambitious Continuation for the Sake of Policy Coherence
Authors: Bossuyt Fabienne
Published: April 2022

This article examines the commitment of the European Union (EU) to advance social goals through the ‘new generation’ of Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) with partner countries in Asia and Latin America. It does so by analysing the positions of the relevant policy actors on the inclusion of social issues in these prospective agreements. The study finds that the EU is pursuing an ambitious social agenda for the future bilateral trade arrangements while building on existing EU initiatives to strengthen the Social Dimension of Globalization (SDG). It will be argued that this high level of social commitment should be attributed to the Commission’s pro-activeness and entrepreneurial ability in rallying the Member States behind the incorporation of social issues in the negotiating mandates. In asking why the Commission is so committed to promoting social justice through the new trade agreements, the article offers three explanations, one referring to the goal of increasing policy coherence in the social-trade nexus, one drawing on the issue of legitimacy and one relating to the pursuit of bureaucratic interests. The article concludes that the EU’s ambitious agenda nevertheless needs to be qualified. The Commission’s attempts to face policy incoherence between the trade and social spheres risk being hampered by a number of internal and external factors, including weak bureaucratic coordination, contradictory policy goals and opposition by the negotiating partners.
The European External Action Service: Living Forwards by Understanding Backwards
Authors: Vanhoonacker Sophie
Published: April 2022

Abstract. Among the many changes introduced to the European Union’s (EU’s) external relations role by the Treaty of Lisbon, one of the most signifi cant is the establishment of a European External Action Service (EEAS) to support the High Representative for Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP). However, the treaty article relating to the EEAS is vague and does not specify precisely the form that this new institution will take. This article considers the options for the design of the EEAS along five dimensions: membership, the scope of responsibilities, the centralization of tasks, the rules for controlling the new body, and the fl exibility of its institutional arrangements. Equally, the establishment of the EEAS builds on past foreign policy cooperation between EU Member States, and it is therefore important to consider how such cooperation was structured in the past in order to comment on the design options for the future EEAS.
The EU Security Strategy Revised: Europe Hedging Its Bets
Authors: Toje Asle
Published: April 2022

Abstract. The 2008 Report on the Implementation of the European Security Strategy was written to update the 2003 European Security Strategy (ESS), the EU’s overall foreign policy strategy. This article offers a comparative analysis of the two documents through the prism of four ‘conceptual pairs’: Strategic culture and human security; war on terror and terror as crime; preventive engagement and hedging; and effective multilateralism and normative power. It is argued that the revised strategy is a sign that the EU may be shifting towards an overall strategy of ‘hedging’ strategy vis-à-vis the great powers. While admirably succeeding in asserting an independent EU approach to foreign and security policy, it does so at the cost of re-submerging the Union’s strategic ambition in ambiguity. By adopting a hedging strategy, the EU can be seen as seeking to opt out of the turbulence usually associated with a systemic shift towards multipolarity.
Sub-regional Cooperation around the Mediterranean and the Role of the EU
Authors: Comelli Michele
Published: April 2022

Abstract. More than other seas, the Mediterranean has played not only a uniting role, acting as a bridge between different regions (Europe, Africa, and the Middle East), but also an important role in competition and division. Its geographical definition is not unchallenged, nor is its political definition, and the Mediterranean has therefore been defined by some scholars as a region connecting other regions rather than as a region per se. However, it is also considered an ensemble of different sub-regional spaces. This article argues that the many heterogeneous elements as well as the different political and economic systems and the different perceptions of security between the two shores of the Mediterranean are obstacles to the emergence of a homogeneous and organized regional space. Nevertheless, the idea of a common Mediterranean space has a normative value that could be used as a political catalyst for cooperation in the area. Numerous sub-regional cooperation initiatives have been launched in the Mediterranean basin, with mixed results. The European Union (EU) has tried to trigger cooperation both indirectly by supporting sub-regional initiatives, especially in the economic field, and directly, through the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership (EMP), which was merged with the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) following the Paris Summit in July 2008. Indeed, EU-led cooperation in the Mediterranean represents the most important and comprehensive form of cooperation in the area, even though the latest developments of the UfM are not encouraging.
The New EU ‘Foreign Policy’ System after Lisbon: A Work in Progress
Authors: Missiroli Antonio
Published: April 2022

This article starts with an overview of the main changes that the Lisbon Treaty brings to the domain of foreign affairs and external relations. The main focus of the analysis, however, lies in the actual implementation of the key provisions related to the role of the High Representative (HR)/Vice-President (VP) and, in particular, the set-up and functioning of the fledgling European External Action Service (EEAS). Finally, this article raises a number of questions about the way in which this new ‘architecture’ might and/or should contribute to improving on the position and action of the EU on the international scene.
CSDP and the Ghent Framework: The Indirect Approach to Permanent Structured Cooperation?
Authors: Coelmont Jo
Published: April 2022

The move, with the Lisbon Treaty, from a European Security and Defence Policy (ESDP) to a Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) must mean more than a change of name. This article pleads for a creative use of Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO), the new mechanism in the area of defence offered by the Lisbon Treaty. Building on the continued will of European Union (EU) Member States to pursue the transformation of their armed forces towards expeditionary operations, notably by exploiting opportunities for further pooling and sharing of capabilities, we propose a Permanent Capability Conference as a high-level political platform to generate effective military convergence. Systematic alignment of national defence planning through such a permanent and structured process at the strategic level will enable each Member State to focus its defence effort on the right capabilities, to do away with redundant capabilities, to make maximal use of pooling and specialization, and to contribute to multinational projects to address Europe's strategic capability shortfalls. In times of austerity, there is no alternative to European cooperation if Europe wants to remain militarily relevant.
The European Union as an Actor in Arctic Governance
Authors: Pieper Moritz , Winter Markus , Wirtz Anika
Published: April 2022

This article analyses the actorness of the European Union (EU) in Arctic governance. As a result of melting ice caps, this region is of increasing geopolitical and commercial importance. All Arctic coastal states have therefore recently developed policies. The EU is doing so as well as it has a direct interest in many issue areas. Maritime policy in the Arctic region affects European transport companies; environmental issues relate to the EU's policy on climate change; and border delimitations are relevant, as they determine access to new energy sources. In these different issue areas, the degree of EU actorness, however, varies. With the exception of the negotiations over the legal status of the Northwest Passage, the EU mainly plays a role regarding non-regulatory and non-binding issues. It has thus far been kept out of talks of a regulatory and binding nature. This variation across issue areas shows the limited role of the EU as an international actor in Arctic governance, despite the region's acknowledged increasing importance.
The External Dimension of the EUs Non-proliferation Policy: Overcoming Inter-institutional Competition
Authors: Zwolski Kamil
Published: April 2022

For many years, the EU's policy on non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (WMDs) has been a victim of institutional fragmentation, imbedded in the post-Maastricht formal separation of the European Community from the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP). On the one hand, since the beginning of the 1990s, the European Commission was developing capacity-building projects on non-proliferation and nuclear safety, utilizing its geographical and thematic financial instruments. On the other hand, more recently, permanent bureaucratic structures entrusted with implementing the EU's WMD Strategy were established in the Council General Secretariat. This posed a challenge to the consistency of the EU's non-proliferation efforts and even triggered inter-institutional competition over limited resources. The European External Action Service (EEAS) offers an opportunity to solve these problems by bringing selected bureaucracies from the Commission and Council General Secretariat together. Will it be sufficient to develop a consistent policy on the non-proliferation of WMDs for the EU? This article analyses structural problems that have been negatively affecting the EU's profile as an actor in non-proliferation policy. Further, it evaluates prospects for enhancing this profile following the institutional reforms introduced by the Lisbon Treaty.
EU Restrictive Measures on the Transnistrian Leaders: Assessing Effectiveness in a Strategy of Divide and Influence
Authors: Giumelli Francesco
Published: April 2022

The objective of this article is to evaluate the effectiveness of the travel ban of the European Union (EU) on the leaders of Transnistria. This case study is revealing, as multiple actions were undertaken by Brussels to settle the conflict. In a strategy of divide et adduc (divide and influence), the travel ban seems to serve the purpose of limiting the capabilities of the targets to undermine their claim for independence and of weakening their power position in the Transnistrian society. This article argues that the travel ban contributes positively to the resolution of the conflict and that sanctions are meeting their primary purpose within a larger strategic context. The method used to achieve this conclusion is based on three different criteria and departs substantially from the behavioural change approach that is widely used in the literature. First, sanctions function according to different logics that may, or may not, aim at the behavioural change of targets. Second, sanctions can only contribute to policy goals that are pursued through complex strategies, and therefore, they are to be evaluated alongside other employed foreign policy tools. Finally, any foreign policy actions can be evaluated as negative or positive (i.e., as a failure or as a success) when compared to other policies that present better results.
What Is the Direction for the EUs Development Cooperation after Lisbon?  A Legal Examination
Authors: Broberg Morten P.
Published: April 2022

Jointly the EU Member States and the European Union provide more than half of all development assistance in the world. The European Union's development cooperation policy was first launched with the Treaty of Rome in 1957, but only in 1992 were specific provisions on EU development cooperation introduced at Treaty level. With the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty, most of these provisions were carried over in the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union. The Lisbon Treaty has, however, introduced a number of both minor and major novelties, and certain parts of the provisions have been re-arranged. Moreover, the Lisbon Treaty proposes to introduce a higher degree of consistency in the European Union's external relations - including also its actions in the field of development cooperation. This article sets out to provide a brief but systematic examination of the extent to which the substantive provisions of the Lisbon Treaty will affect the direction of the Union's development cooperation policy. To this end, it first provides an outline of how this policy has developed from the Union's inception until the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty. It then goes on to identify the changes brought about by the Lisbon Treaty before finally providing an evaluation of the changes.
EU Democracy Promotion in the Eastern Neighbourhood: One Template, Multiple Approaches
Authors: Stewart Susan
Published: April 2022

The article sketches the EU approach to democracy promotion in the eastern neighbourhood, including the six countries involved in the Eastern Partnership (EaP) and Russia. A comparison of the relevant documents reveals that issues of democratic development are much more present in the EU approach towards the six EaP partners than in its dealings with Russia. The remainder of the article presents a detailed account of EU democracy promotion efforts in Russia and Ukraine. The interactions with Russia in the realm of democracy promotion are found to be superficial and unsystematic, concentrating on individual cases without much depth or consistency. In the case of Ukraine, the approach is much more holistic, with a variety of aspects of democracy being addressed over time through projects and dialogue, even if these have not had a high priority in EU-Ukraine relations until recently. There are two key reasons for these differing approaches. First, Ukraine under Yushchenko (January 2005-February 2010) was amenable to democracy promotion offerings from the EU, whereas Russia under both Putin and Medvedev has clearly rejected such efforts. Second, the perceived importance of the Russian Federation in the energy and security realms has made key EU Member States unwilling to alienate Russian elites by insisting on implementing projects related to democracy promotion.
Democracy Promotion Meets Development Cooperation: The EU as a Promoter of Democratic Governance in Sub-Saharan Africa
Authors: Del Biondo Karen
Published: April 2022

This article analyses whether the European Union (EU) has a standard substantive content that it tries to promote in sub-Saharan Africa. It is argued that the EU's policies are both broad and limited. On the one hand, the EU promotes a holistic agenda of 'democratic governance', inspired by the paradigms of international development cooperation, namely good governance, the securitization of development policies and participatory development. This is clearly reflected in the aid programmes. At the same time, there is some differentiation between various sub-Saharan African countries, which can be explained mostly by the specific situation and needs of the countries and by the openness of partner countries to democracy assistance. On the other hand, when looking at EU political conditionality, only a very limited, electoral, democratic model is promoted, with little variation according to the specific situation in the country.
EU-Brazil Relations:A Strategic Partnership?
Authors: Whitman Richard G. , Rodt Annemarie P.
Published: April 2022

The global distribution of power is changing. Western dominance is declining, and new actors are entering the international stage. In response to the changing global context the European Union (EU) is seeking to further develop strategic partnerships to promote its interests and influence beyond Europe's borders. In 2007, the EU established a strategic partnership with Brazil. The purpose of this initiative was to strengthen the Union's ties with the country, which is becoming an increasingly important regional and international player. This article investigates the EU's relationship with Brazil since the end of the Cold War. In particular, it focuses on the nascent strategic partnership and its three priority areas for cooperation: enhancing bilateral relations, environmental sustainability and energy security. The article concludes that the strategic partnership lacks clearly defined purpose, direction and content. As a result, the Union's Brazil-related activities have been ad hoc rather than strategic so far. However, there may be room for joint leadership in mutual priority areas, if the EU and Brazil engage in a truly strategic partnership in the future.
A Different View on the Making of European Security: The EU Passenger Name Record System as a Socio-technical Assemblage
Authors: Duez Denis , Bellanova Rocco
Published: April 2022

Most of the academic research on the developments of EU Justice and Home Affairs (EU JHA) tends to overlook the role played by technologies in their relations with classical 'human' and institutional actors. This is particularly problematic because in official discourses, technologies are requested, designed, and built as cornerstones of European security and its external dimension. Still, apart from 'technicalities', their use and design are generally assumed as politics-free. On the contrary, this contribution brings technologies to the forefront of the research and reframes them in terms of socio-technical assemblages. From this perspective, it analyses the role of the 2011 EU Passenger Name Record project in the making of European security and its external dimension. The lesson learned is that human institutions are neither the only players nor the passive victims of technological determinisms. Rather, focusing on a socio-technical assemblage means to inquire the effective participation of different actors and thus critically discuss the making of European security in terms of politics.
EU Declarations of Competence to Multilateral Agreements: A Useful Reference Base?
Authors: Casteleiro Andrés Delgado
Published: April 2022

The participation of the European Union alongside its Member States in multilateral agreements can create situations of uncertainty for third parties. In order to deal with this uncertainty, the EU makes a declaration stating the extent to which the international agreement is governed by EU competence. However, these declarations of competence create uncertainty as regards their legal effects and effectiveness. This article aims to examine these issues by analyzing these declarations from a practical perspective. The first section conceptualizes the declarations, first by establishing their basic features, second, indentifying their legal effects, and third, by identifying a list of problems attached to these instruments. The second section focuses on both the internal and the external practice regarding the declarations of competence. This section highlights how the increasing tendency of the European Court of Justice (ECJ) to rely on the declaration of competence is not mirrored in the external sphere. In fact, no declaration of competence has ever been invoked by a third party or used by an international court to apportion the responsibilities between the EU and its Member States. The third section assesses the overall effectiveness of the declarations balanced with the problems that they entail.
The EU and Mass Protests in the Neighbourhood: Models of Normative (In)action
Authors: Raik Kristi
Published: April 2022

Since the 'Bulldozer Revolution' in Serbia in 2000, the EU has had to deal with a wave of mass protests in its neighbourhood. Its responses to the 'colour revolutions' in the East and Arab uprisings in the South have cast doubt on its foreign policy identity as a normative power and its commitment to promote democracy outside its borders. Based on an analysis of thirteen cases in 2000-2012, the article identifies four models of EU involvement in the protests: (1) model power, (2) promoter of (regime) change, (3) mediator/facilitator and (4) guardian of stability. It discusses these models in light of the concept of 'normative power Europe' (NPE) and stresses the need to look at the interplay between normative and power political considerations in order to account for the EU's (in)action in different cases. First, model power has been an important form of EU normative power in the Eastern neighbourhood, but its effects have been unintended and often troubling for the EU. Second, promoting regime change, as the EU has done in the cases of Serbia and Syria, can be a strong form of pursuing normative goals, but it contradicts the emphasis of NPE on normative instruments. Third, mediation/facilitation, practised most successfully in the case of Ukraine in 2004, comes closer to the specific characteristics of NPE; yet, the EU's readiness and ability to mediate has often been limited. Fourth, defending stability has been the most common EU response, reflecting its security concerns and a preference for system change over regime change.
Revitalizing the European Neighbourhood Economic Community: The Case for Legally Binding Sectoral Multilateralism
Authors: Blockmans Steven , Blockmans Steven
Published: April 2022

The revolutionary upheaval in the southern Mediterranean and the slow reforms in most of the eastern neighbourhood have pushed the European Union to revise its approach to the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP). In May 2011, the Commission presented a full review of the ENP, introducing an enhanced form of conditionality which should see more political and financial support being given to those neighbouring countries that implement more reforms and are more democratic. Characteristic of this 'more for more' conditionality is its strong bilateral dimension. While there is some rhetorical commitment to strengthening the regional dimensions of the ENP, for example, the Union for the Mediterranean and the Eastern Partnership, few tangible proposals to that effect have been made. Notably, while the reviewed ENP repeats the goal of a 'Neighbourhood Economic Community' as a long-term objective of regional integration across the neighbourhood, it makes no proposals on instruments or strategy as to how to achieve that objective. This paper proposes that 'legally binding sectoral multilateralism' should be the EU's method and instrument of choice to reach that goal. This entails a pro-active strategy consisting of treaty-based legal integration between the EU and neighbouring countries and between the latter themselves, in sectors where such is clearly beneficial in its own right, as well as in the light of the long-term objective of a neighbourhood community. On the basis of two case studies, pertaining to the Energy Community Treaty and the draft Transport Community Treaty, the paper explores the benefits and weaknesses of this approach. The paper argues that the challenges posed by legal fragmentation in the wider European legal space can be overcome in order to reap the substantial economic and policy benefits spurred by legally binding sectoral multilateralism.
The European External Action Service and the Nexus between CFSP/CSDP and Development Cooperation
Authors: Merket Hans
Published: April 2022

The EU's commitment to integrate and fine-tune security and development policies has been considerably complicated by three main obstacles: (1) the legal distinction between development cooperation and CFSP/CSDP; (2) the diffused institutional responsibility over the EU's toolbox in these policy areas; and (3) the discord between the elusive interpretation of the security-development linkage and the rather rhetorical call to enhance coordination. The creation of the European External Action Service significantly alters the EU's architecture in this regard by pooling together the EU's scattered instruments and policy actors. In this manner, it offers opportunities to overcome the obstacle of diffused responsibility and operationalize the rhetorical coordination commitment. However, the legal divide between development cooperation and CFSP/CSDP has survived the Lisbon Treaty changes and may considerably complicate the day-to-day operation of the EU's foreign service. Moreover, the EEAS fulfils only a supporting role and the extent to which its potential is turned into practice depends to a large degree on the constant and constructive cooperation with the EU's traditional external actors.
The ECJs Judgment in Air Transport Association of America and the International Legal Context of the EUs Climate Change Policy
Authors: De Baere Geert , Ryngaert Cedric
Published: April 2022

The present article discusses the international legal context of the EU's emissions trading scheme in the light of the judgment of the Court of Justice of the EU in Air Transport Association of America. After ascertaining the effect in the EU legal order of the relevant international norms invoked in that case, the focus of the present article lies on the discussion of the substantive issues that arise when reviewing the scope of Directive 2008/101 in light of the applicable norms. The article assesses the legality under customary international law of the jurisdictional assertions of the EU as upheld by the Court of Justice, reviews the EU measures in light of the law of the World Trade Organization, and compares those measures with similar EU environmental measures in the field of fisheries regulation and maritime transport.
Living Apart Together: EU Comprehensive Security from a Trade Perspective
Authors: Bossuyt Fabienne , Drieghe Lotte
Published: April 2022

In contributing to the debate on the European Union (EU)'s comprehensive approach to security, this article examines the structural-operational interface between trade and security. It hypothesizes that the challenge of comprehensive security to combine structural activities with operational measures is most pronounced in the trade-security interface. As the oldest, most integrated and most powerful external policy domain of the EU, trade policy has acquired a high degree of institutional autonomy, operates according to its own logic and standard procedures and has a distinct organizational esprit de corps. This inhibits the integration of the EU's trade policy into the more comprehensive security portfolio.

To operationalize this hypothesis, the article empirically explores the coherence between EU trade and security discourses and the extent to which trade measures have been used for security policy ends, as envisaged in the 2003 European Security Strategy. The empirical analysis confirms the hypothesis that coherence between the trade and security areas is limited, and that this relates to the institutional insulation of the EU trade policy sphere. However, the findings reveal that external factors, such as international trade law and preferences of the trade partners, should also be considered to further explain the relatively limited coherence between EU trade and security.
Constraint and Consent in the Transfer of European Rules: The Case of China
Authors: Rousselin Mathieu
Published: April 2022

This article seeks to explain why powerful governance-seekers select the European rule rather than any other rule available to them. Building upon explanatory mechanisms put forward in the Europeanization literature, the article proposes a conceptual framework in which rule transfer is a function of three variables: the domestic preference of the governance-seeker; the comparative properties of the various rules in competition; and the power distribution between governance-seekers and governance-providers. On this basis, two explanatory hypotheses are formulated, labelled Europe-by-force (or constraint-based rule transfer) and Europe-by-choice (or consent-based rule transfer), which are then tested thanks to four comparative case studies dedicated to the transfer of European rules and standards towards the People's Republic of China.
CSDP Police Missions: Comparing Bottom-up and Top-down Approaches
Authors: Moore Anna
Published: April 2022

Insufficient rule of law is a major cause of instability in Europe's near abroad. Europe, home to some of the world's best national police forces, should be an effective advisor on police reform in the continent's periphery and beyond. The Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) police missions to date, however, have produced underwhelming results. These missions have largely followed a 'top-down' approach, co-locating senior EU police officials with their counterparts at national institutions. In contrast to current EU policy, the literature on police reform in post-conflict societies argues for a 'bottom-up' approach, in which trainers and advisors co-locate at regional and local levels and foster trust-building and civilian oversight. While the EU may find bottom-up missions difficult to conduct, such missions would better contribute to lasting security sector reform in host countries than top-down operations. Revising unsuccessful policies and achieving demonstrable results is especially important in the context of mounting doubt over the value of CSDP.
Normative Power Europe? The European Union in the Negotiations on a Free Trade Agreement with India
Authors: Leeg Tobias
Published: April 2022

This article examines the European Union (EU) as an actor in international trade negotiations and calls into question constructivist notions of the European Union as a 'Normative Power'. The article argues out of an institutionalist perspective that the distribution of competences between Commission, Council and European Parliament (EP) in EU trade policy systematically privileges strategic and economic interests over normative objectives. Drawing on a principal-agent approach, it analyses the case of the EU-India negotiations on a free trade agreement. Results suggest that the close cooperation between Council and Commission before and during the negotiations prevent EU trade policy to be more guided by normative objectives. The European Parliament, as the voice of normative concerns, could influence negotiations, due to the EP's new powers in the ratification process. However, since the EP is institutionally excluded from the agenda-setting-process and can hardly control the Commission during the bargaining process, it capacities to set the negotiation goals ex ante are very constrained. Only when negotiations are in full play can the EP try to kick questionable demands off the EU's trade agenda and strive for normative aims. Therefore, issues like the inclusion of human rights and labour and environmental clauses seemed to have gained some importance, while economic development concerns hardly seem to influence the EU's trade negotiations.
Communicative Power Europe? How the EU Copes with Opposition in International Negotiations
Authors: Panke Diana
Published: April 2022

The European Union (EU) is becoming increasingly active in international negotiations, not the least because speaking with one voice is a chance for Member States to increase their leverage. Yet in the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), the EU is a comparatively small group which often faces opposition from considerably larger groups, most notably the G77 and the Non-Aligned Movement. Since the EU is smaller in size than its counterparts, being influential on the basis of voting alone is unlikely to work well. Thus, this article inductively examines how the EU can be turned into an effective communicative power that manages to influence UNGA resolutions. Most importantly, bypassing a larger opposition requires bilateral lobbying, whilst facing the opposing group en bloc in multilateral negotiations should be avoided. On this basis, even smaller groups can become effective communicative powers by disseminating novel arguments or making normative appeals.
Strategic Patience and EU Reform-Support. EU and the Arab Spring: The State of Play after Three Years
Authors: Seeberg Peter
Published: April 2022

The post 'Arab Spring' scenario in the Middle East has produced a more differentiated, complex and unstable Middle Eastern reality, where security problems, lack of social cohesion and a deteriorating economic situation is challenging the cooperation between the EU and its southern Mediterranean partners. A focus on the fall of (some of) the authoritarian regimes in the Middle East region and the possible local or regional consequences of the uprisings has led recent research to neglect strategic issues of importance for the European-Middle Eastern relations. By examining the development of political transition processes in relation to EU support, financial problems in some of the Middle Eastern states and how this affects the possibilities and perspectives for regional cooperation, this article sheds new light on how the EU institutions have worked in relation to strategic challenges in the Middle East following the changes over the last three years in the European neighbourhood. The article concludes by pointing at a disproportionate relation between the EU's ambitions and its political and institutional capabilities, arguing that strategic patience indeed seems to be necessary - also regarding EU's own development.
The Implications of the Euro Crisis for European Foreign Policy- Lessons from Crisis Management and International Trade
Authors: Fägersten Björn
Published: April 2022

This article investigates the foreign policy consequences of the euro crisis. Two distinctive foreign policy areas are investigated: crisis management in North Africa and the negotiation of free trade agreements with the US and India. The article employs an analytical framework that focuses on three key aspects shaping EU policy: capabilities, cohesion and context. The results suggest considerable changes in each, but not only in one direction: there are mechanisms driving policy in different directions which suggest a nuanced conclusion is required. The overarching findings of the article, however, are that the foreign policy machinery of the EU has been rather resilient to the financial crisis but that great variation exists both between different foreign policy areas and between the different components that make up the EU as an international actor.
The Underpinning Realpolitik of the EUs Policies towards Ukraine: An Analysis of Interests and Norms in the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement
Authors: Smith Nicholas Ross
Published: April 2022

Owing to the EU's power position within the European regional setting, this article argues that the EU's offer of an Association Agreement to Ukraine was first and foremost driven by self-interest. In gauging the opinions of EU officials in conjunction with the examination of official policy documents, an argument is made that the EU's material, regime promotion, and security interests were all dominant factors in the EU's foreign policy decision. However, the EU's self-perception as a normative power played an influential mediating role in this decision. While norms have an impact, they are subordinate to the EU's self-interest in the context of Ukraine.
Conceptualizing EU Crisis Management
Authors: Pavlov Nikolay
Published: April 2022

The main purpose of this article is to contribute to the conceptual framework of EU crisis management. As an evolving and politically sensitive concept EU crisis management still lacks a solid conceptual and theoretical basis which undermines its credibility and performance. The research hypothesis is that the conceptual deficit in EU crisis management is first and foremost an ideological issue. EU crisis management has no adequate ideological basis and, subsequently, no adequate conceptual and strategic framework. The theoretical approach to define EU crisis management within the liberal school of international relations is examined and critically assessed. The main conclusion is that strengthening the ideological basis is a must for more effective conceptual, strategic and institutional development of EU crisis management. Finally, a Methodology for the validation of novel crisis management concepts is proposed. By testing alternative conceptual and governance models the innovative Methodology for strategic-level Concept Development and Experimentation (CD&E) could provide scientific support for the establishment of the European Union's crisis management system.
The EU in the Mediterranean: Between Its International Identity and Member States Interests
Authors: Zajac Justyna
Published: April 2022

One of the reasons for the low effectiveness of the European Union's policy in the Mediterranean is the discrepancy between the EU's international identity and the national interests of its Member States. The EU has been building its international identity on values that are proper to political idealism. In large measure, however, the EU's declared aims have not been consistent with the national interests of its Member States. In effect, while Member States are able to adopt general guidelines for the EU foreign policy, translating such guidelines into specific actions often proves impossible. The aim of this article is to analyse the low effectiveness of the EU's policy in the Mediterranean region in terms of the discrepancies between the idealistic concept deriving from the EU's international identity on the one hand, and its realistic actions based on the EU's Member States' national interests, on the other. As the European Union's foreign policy is shaped at the intergovernmental level, national interests tend to take the upper hand. The Mediterranean policy of five EU-Member States will be analysed - France, Spain, Italy, Germany and the United Kingdom.
Resisting Legal Facts: Are CFSP Norms as Soft as They Seem?
Authors: Wessel Ramses A.
Published: April 2022

Studies on the (non-)compliance with CFSP norms often misinterpret the legal nature of those norms. Classifying CFSP norms as ‘non-binding’ may help in distinguishing this policy area from other European Union’s (EU) policies, but does not do justice to the committing nature of the norms. Irrespective of the limited role Court’s may play in relation to CFSP, the norms often intend to bind the Member States. This has been the case from the outset, but seems strengthened now, as the Lisbon Treaty streamlined procedures and consolidated the EU’s external action. In studying resistance to CFSP norms, it is worthwhile to take their legal nature into account. In that sense, the broad definition of soft law used in the introduction to this special issue is helpful as it includes binding norms without enforcement mechanisms. Yet, the question remains whether one can still hold that judicial enforcement and the principles of primacy and direct effect are completely alien to the area of CFSP.
EU Bridging Operation in Support of AU and UN Missions in the Central African Republic
Authors: Törö Csaba
Published: April 2022

In the practice of EU-UN collaboration in international crisis management, examples of European Union (EU) military operations have emerged when contingents of troops are dispatched to African conflict zones for limited period and purpose as temporary support for pending United Nations (UN) or already operating African Union (AU) missions. These EU deployments are intended to ‘bridge’ the gap in international capabilities until a more comprehensive and sustained ‘multidimensional presence’ under UN direction is not prepared to take over full responsibility for the security and protection of civilians and humanitarian assistance. Bridging operations can be conducted as temporary EU military crisis management undertakings in support of other multinational missions. The current deployment of an EU-led military contingent in the Central African Republic (CAR) began originally to help the AU intervention force, then it continued its operation to complement the subsequent UN mission on the way to its full operational capability. EU bridging operations are closely coordinated with the UN, implemented under explicit Security Council authorizations and concluded with the transfer of tasks and responsibility to a succeeding UN mission.
The EUs Performance in the 2015 NPT Review Conference: What Went Wrong
Authors: Dee Megan
Published: April 2022

This article presents a performance analysis of the European Union (EU) during the 2015 Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conference. Detailing what went wrong for the EU across three levels of performance analysis, the article goes on to present a number of key lessons for the EU approaching the next NPT review cycle. First, the EEAS should focus its energies onto specified ‘EU’ issues where there is greater convergence of Member States interests. Second, the EU must concentrate on its outreach with third countries prior to and during NPT review negotiations, particularly other NPT groups such as the NPDI. Third, portrayals of the EU as a ‘microcosm’ of the NPT raise expectations of the EU’s contribution to this forum and should not be overstated. Reconsideration of the EU’s raison d’être as a group within the NPT is therefore encouraged with a re-emphasis upon the EU’s regional bloc identity particularly warranted.
Partnering for Global Security: The EU, Its Strategic Partners and Transnational Security Challenges
Authors: Renard Thomas
Published: April 2022

This article reviews the scope and depth of the European Union’s cooperation on security issues with key global powers, i.e., its so-called ‘strategic partners’. It starts from the assumption that the EU pursues its ambition to become a global security actor as stated in its strategic documents and that, to do so, it must develop partnerships with other countries. The three key questions that this article addresses are the following: How do these security partnerships unfold? Do they deliver? And do they matter at all? The article starts with a quick overview of the key security challenges identified by the EU, before exploring the Union’s attempt to become a (global) security actor, which is the pre-requisite to enter international partnerships. The main part of the article then looks specifically and in detail at the EU’s ten strategic partnerships across four security issues: non-proliferation, terrorism, organized crime and cyber-security. A final section assesses the value of these security partnerships.
Europe in Asia: Policy Options of an Interested Bystander
Authors: Liegl Markus B. , Gareis Sven Bernhard
Published: April 2022

As tensions between the United States and China are on the rise, Europe needs to prepare for the contingency of a US-China cold war–like stand-off in Asia. Currently, Europe’s political engagement with East Asia is quite underwhelming while European interest are as substantial as numerous. In this article, we focus on the question of how Europe could and should position itself in East Asia in order to increase its political weight, to cope with the negative repercussions of conflict between China and the United States, and to prevent Europe’s imminent marginalization in this globally important region. For Europe and the European Union in particular, all this demands urgently to come up with a more unified and cohesive strategic approach. If Europe wants to play a meaningful role in the Asian century, significant steps are required in order to bolster Europe’s existing economic and political weight with genuine ‘actorness’ abroad.
The Huawei Case and What It Reveals About Europes Trade Policy
Authors: Pepermans Astrid
Published: April 2022

In 2003, China was included among the European Union (EU)’s six strategic partners. However, it soon became clear that China is not only a partner, but also a serious economic competitor for the EU. This article focuses on the Sino-European telecom conflict, which took place between 2010 and 2014, and in which the European Commission was cornered by China’s tactical use of economic diplomacy. This case shows that the European Member States are unable to pull together and to create a unified policy towards China. The Chinese and their team of large national companies have been eager to exploit this European weakness. It seems that, certainly in this case, competition has triumphed over cooperation.
From Thin to Thick Foreign Policy Europeanization: Common Foreign and Security Policy and Finland
Authors: Palosaari Teemu
Published: April 2022

The value of Europeanization for empirical research on foreign policy has been a much questioned topic recently. This article argues that Europeanization helps us to ask researchable questions regarding foreign policy. To support this argument, it will introduce an analytical framework that identifies two directions (adaptation and projection) and two dimensions: ‘thin’ Europeanization which refers to changes in policies and organizational structures, and ‘thick’ Europeanization implying learning, socialization, and identity change. The article proposes a way to better integrate the sociological institutionalist aspects of the Europeanization process into the adaptation- projection dynamism. To demonstrate the framework, the article looks at Finnish foreign and security policy and argues that the Europeanization of Finland has been more profound than previous studies indicate. The European Union (EU)’s Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) has played a significant role in a number of transformations in Finnish policies since 1995, resulting in ‘thick’ Europeanization. In addition to national adaptation, Finland has, with varying outcome, tried to project ideas, preferences and models from the national to the European level.
Libya and Syria: Inserting the European Neighbourhood Policy in the European Unions Crisis Response Cycle
Authors: Koenig Nicole
Published: April 2022

Fostering peace and stability has been a key aim of the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP), but its effective impact on conflicts has been marginal. This article analyses the ENP’s security dimension through the conceptual prism of coherence. As a policy cutting across functional domains and governance levels the ENP faces horizontal and vertical coherence challenges. The empirical analysis focuses on two cases lying at the intersection of the ENP and comprehensive European Union (EU) crisis management: the EU’s responses to the Syrian and Libyan conflicts between 2011 and 2016. The analysis shows that the EU has gradually redirected ENP funds to short-term security- and migration-related goals. However, the EU has failed to ensure vertical coherence in the field of high politics. The externalities of the Libyan and Syrian conflicts might foster national preference convergence and thereby increase vertical coherence. While this should strengthen the ENP’s security dimension, the risk is that the policy’s distinct character as a tool for structural conflict prevention is diluted within an ever broadening comprehensive approach that focuses on conflict symptoms rather than root causes.