About the Book
A very timely and topical volume concerned with the impact of the Lisbon Treaty on the European Union’s (EU) capacity to further develop a distinctive foreign policy in accordance with the various policy instruments necessary to fulfil its role as a global actor. This edited volume brings together a host of scholars in the fields of European Studies and International Relations whose contributions offer both innovative theoretical perspectives and new empirical insights. Overall, the book emphasizes the question of the EU’s evolving legitimacy and efficiency as a foreign policy and diplomatic actor on the regional and global stage. This shared concern is clearly reflected in the book’s three-pronged structure: Part 1 - the EU a controversial global political actor in an emergent multipolar world with contributions from A.Gamble, M.Telò and J.Howorth; Part 2 - After the Lisbon Treaty: the Common Foreign and Security Policy and the European External Action Service, includes chapters from C.Lequesne, C.Carta and H.Mayer; Part 3 - R.Gillespie, F.Ponjaert, G.Grevi, Z.Chen, H.Nakamura and U.Salma Bava assess the CFSP and the EU’s external relations in action. Foreword by S.E.M P. Vimont. As a result, the book is a useful and relevant contribution to European Union studies and International Relations’ research and teaching. It offers any interested party informed and comprehensive insights into EU foreign policy at a time when it seeks to undertake an increased role in World affairs and this despite economic crisis.
Table of Contents:
Introduction, Mario Telò; Part I The EU: A Controversial Global Political Actor Within an Emergent Multipolar World; Chapter 1 The EU and the Evolving Shift of Power in Global Governance, Andrew Gamble; Chapter 2 The EU: A Civilian Power’s Diplomatic Action after the Lisbon Treaty. Bridging Internal Complexity and International Convergence, Mario Telò; Chapter 3 The Lisbon Treaty, CSDP and the EU as a Security Actor, Jolyon Howorth; Part II After the Lisbon Treaty: The Common Foreign Security Policy and the European External Action Service; Chapter 4 The European External Action Service: Can a New Institution Improve the Coherence of the EU Foreign Policy?, Christian Lequesne; Chapter 5 The EEAS and EU Executive Actors within the Foreign Policy-Cycle, Caterina Carta; Chapter 6 The Challenge of Coherence and Consistency in EU Foreign Policy, Hartmut Mayer; Part III Assessing CFSP and the EU’s External Relations in Action: Near and Far Abroad; Chapter 7 The European Neighbourhood Policy and the Challenge of the Mediterranean Southern Rim, Richard Gillespie; Chapter 8 Inter-Regionalism as a Coherent and Intelligible Instrument in the EU Foreign Policy Toolbox: A Comparative Assessment, Frederik Ponjaert; Chapter 9 The EU Strategic Partnerships: Process and Purposes, Giovanni Grevi; Chapter 10 The Efficacy of Post-Lisbon Treaty EU’s External Actions and China–EU Strategic Partnership, Chen Zhimin; Chapter 11 The Efficiency of European External Action and the Institutional Evolution of EU–Japan Political Relations, Hidetoshi Nakamura; Chapter 12 The Efficiency of the EU’s External Actions and the EU–India Relationship, Ummu Salma Bava;
About the Author :
Mario Telo is a member of the Royal Academy of Sciences and professor of international relations at the Universite Libre de Bruxelles, and of EU institutions at LUISS University, Rome. Frederik Ponjaert is researcher at the ULB and Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, and teaches comparative regionalism at Sciences Po, Paris. Pierre Vimont, Mario Telo, Andrew Gamble, Jolyon Howorth, Christian Lequesne, Caterina Carta, Hartmut Mayer, Richard Gillespie, Frederik Ponjaert, Giovanni Grevi, Chen Zhimin, Hidetoshi Nakamura, Ummu Salma Bava.
Review :
'Commentators have often projected their own hopes and fears onto the EU and its Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP). Does the EU, in its foreign policy aspects, represent a "post-modern" world of persuasion and public-spirited action or is it just a hapless would-be state that has to appeal to the United States, as in Bosnia and Libya, to act effectively? The contributors to The EU's Foreign Policy - from Europe and the three most important Asian countries - reject this simplistic dichotomy, exploring how EU policy actually functions and describing its contributions to modifications in the structure of world politics. How the influence of the EU can be maintained despite financial crisis and long-term recession, and increasing German dominance, remains a major question, not resolved but illuminated by this thoughtful volume.' Robert O. Keohane, Princeton University, USA 'The EU's Foreign Policy is a welcome addition to the literature on EU foreign policy, as it critically assesses the changes that have been implemented since the Lisbon Treaty entered into force, and considers the EU's influence in the increasingly multipolar world of the 21st century. The contributors are all highly respected experts, and include academics from well beyond the EU's borders. Highly recommended.' Karen E. Smith, London School of Economics, UK 'This volume is original and useful for three main reasons : it provides a conceptual framework for grasping the EU's idiosyncratic international power and diplomatic action; it offers a fresh analysis of the EEAS, its structure and relationship to the EU external action system; and it offers new research on EU diplomacy in action in the near and far abroad. In addition, contributions from scholars from China, Japan and India provide an invaluable perspective from the outside-in. The book will be especially useful for master and PhD students in EU studies.' Kalypso Nikolaidis, St Anthony's College, University of Oxford, UK 'Timely and comprehensive, this book is a valuable instrument for in-depth and up-to-date study of the multiple aspects of international security management. As such, it represents a useful reference for both experts and students. In addition, by questioning traditional approaches to the European Union and calling for an innovative view of world affairs, it encourages renewed research and topical debate on the subject.' The International Spectator 'This is a welcome addition to the literature critiquing the EU's foreign policy. ... the book is well structured and succeeds in its aim to critically 'assess the EU's capabilities and performances [... and] to capture the evolving nature of the EU as a distinctive type of global player' ... this volume provides a rich contemporary analysis of the global role of the EU after the Lisbon Treaty. Consequently, this book would be of particular relevance to undergraduates and postgraduates of EU studies as well as researchers who wish to assess current EU diplomacy.' Journal of Contemporary European Studies 'This is a most timely endeavour ... this book aims to 'shun teleological understandings of the EU' and manages to offer nuanced interpretations of the EU's policies and trajectories. Beyond simplistic dichotomies, it offers a refreshing combination of EU studies and international relations theories as well as rich empirics that are skilfully interpreted and tied in with larger debates about Europe's position in a post-hegemonic and non-polar world.' Journal of Common Market Studies 'The authors thoroughly succeed in illustrating the results of their coordinated research. The structure of the book draws very useful insights for both IR scholars dealing with global power and international agency and for the literature on institutionalised cooperation beyond the EU's borders. It also paves the way for further research on largely overlooked, although strategic, regional contexts and for multidisciplinary approaches overcoming current theoretical deadlocks in the study of EU foreign policy.' Political Studies Review
