This book provides a critical and updated analysis of the nature of the EU’s strategic partnership diplomacy, and of the partnerships themselves, in times of power shift and contestation. It links with key aspects of the EU’s Global Strategy; it brings together a strong list of experts who work within a clear framework for analysis; and it deals not only with the substance of the policy but also with the ways in which the policy as a whole has emerged, is conducted and might develop in the future. In offering an inclusive set of case studies and diverse perspectives, this book aims to advance both conceptualization and analysis of the implementation of the established EU partnerships. The book highlights the notion of strategic partnership as a foreign policy instrument to support EU external action in a context of multilevel change and crisis; its policy dimension as a gradually separated, but not separable policy within the Union’s external action; the institutional component given the emergence of SPs as a sort of self-preserving institutional platform allowing for denser and deeper cooperation in various policy areas; and the implications for the EU’s self-conception as an international actor with a global identity and role.

This edited volume sets out to explore the paradox that the European Union (EU) produces policies with strategic qualities, but lacks the institutions and concepts to engage in strategic reasoning and action proper. The book has a two-fold agenda, exploring current EU external policies that are, or seem to be, linked to strategic priorities, and also studying the concept of strategy in the particular context of EU decision- and policymaking. The volume first examines the character of the Union as a strategic actor at this stage of its development. It then explores the ability of the Union to act and otherwise influence both its periphery and the wider world, focusing in particular on how it is perceived by other actors. The final section comprises personal assessments by a group of contributors regarding the character of the union as a strategic actor in the present and future. When these are pieced together, a picture emerges of a European strategy in the making, albeit one that so far is modest and partial. This book will be of interest to students of European Security, European Politics and IR.

Examining the role of the CJEU in shaping the European Union as a Normative power, this book explores the influence of the Court of Justice of the European Union on Normative Power Europe to evaluate the extent to which the CJEU’s actions consolidate normative foreign policy in third states. Combining perspectives from international relations and law, it explores the EU’s normative impact in the international arena, offering a multidimensional view which characterizes the power of the EU as a normative power while examining its role as a regulatory power alongside a historical review of the legal doctrinal development of the CJEU. Distilling the EU's uniqueness in the international arena and emphasizing that its fundamental strength lies in the technical normative power approach, the book argues that the genuine EU impact is emphasized in unique sectoral niches noting the EU’s dominance in terms of agriculture, environmental protection, privacy, and data protection or tech policies- a classic technical normative power that combines a legal basis and a value base. The book analyses several case studies which present the triangular relations between CJEU rulings, EU institutions, and third countries to identify both direct and indirect signs of a genuine normative effect. Taking an interdisciplinary approach, this book will be of interest to academics and students researching aspects of European law, international law, or international relations.

The term "soft power" describes a country's ability to get what it wants by attracting rather than coercing others - by engaging hearts and minds through cultural and political values and foreign policies that other countries see as legitimate and conducive to their own interests.This book analyzes the soft power assets of the United States and Japan, and how they contributed to one of the most successful, if unlikely, bilateral relationships of the twentieth century. Sponsored by the U.S. Social Science Research Council and the Japan Foundation's Center for Global Partnership, the book brings together anthropologists, political scientists, historians, economists, diplomats, and others to explore the multiple axes of soft power that operate in the U.S.-Japanese relationship, and between the United States and Japan and other regions of the world.The contributors move beyond an "either-or" concept of hard versus soft power to a more dynamic interpretation, and demonstrate the important role of non-state actors in wielding soft power. They show how public diplomacy on both sides of the Pacific - bolstered by less formal influences such as popular cultural icons, product brands, martial arts, baseball, and educational exchanges - has led to a vibrant U.S.-Japanese relationship since World War II despite formidable challenges. Emphasizing the essentially interactive nature of persuasion, the book highlights an approach to soft power that has many implications for the world today.

Covering the history, governing institutions, and policies of the European Union, Jonathan Olsen and John McCormick present the EU as one of the world's economic and political superpowers, which has brought far-reaching changes to the lives of Europeans and has helped its member states to take a newly assertive role on the global stage. Unlike most other books on the EU, this text pays particular attention to the implications of the EU for the United States. Thoroughly revised, with new photographs and updated tables and figures, the sixth edition of The European Union explains developments that have brought severe challenges to the Union, such as the Greek crisis, the Brexit, tensions with Russia over Ukraine, and new waves of refugees into Europe. Essential reading for students of European politics, this book offers an up-to-the-minute look at both the opportunities and existential threats facing this powerful institution.

A comprehensive analysis of the European Union's foreign policy over 40 years, this study describes how multilateralism has been used in the fields of peace, security, and military crisis management. Relying on detailed case studies, this new research looks at interventions in Macedonia, the Balkans, the Congo, and Chad--and assesses EU's cooperation with NATO and the United Nations during these emergencies.

The emergence of new powers fundamentally questions the traditional views on international relations, multilateralism or security as a range of countries now competes for regional and global leadership - economically, politically, technologically and militarily. As the focus of international attention shifts from the Atlantic to the Pacific, the European states in particular are seen to lose influence relative to the emerging economic powerhouses of China, Russia, India and Brazil. European nations find themselves too small to engage meaningfully with these continent-sized powers and, in an increasingly multipolar world are concerned their influence can only continue to decline. This book analyses the shifts in the structure of global power and examines the threats and opportunities they bring to Europe. Leading European Contributors reflect on how the EU can utilise collective strength to engage and compete with rapidly developing nations. They examine perceptions of the EU among the emerging powers and the true meaning and nature of any strategic partnerships negotiated. Finally they explore the shape and structure of the international system in the 21st century and how the EU can contribute to and shape it.

This book fosters critical reflection on Europe's place in a fast-changing global environment, covering the soft and hard facets of EU power along the spectrum of low politics–high politics. Taking an innovative case-study approach, it provides a wide understanding of European Studies and International Relations beyond classical power considerations and addresses the crossroads of the two disciplines. Fundamentally, it addresses the specificity of the EU as an actor in International Relations and shows that the EU holds power and influence – creating opportunities for peace-making and peace-building – in a way classical IR theory would suggest it should not. This book will be of key interest to scholars and students of European Studies, foreign policy analysis, International Relations, Security Studies, Political Science, History, and Economics.

​This book explores the multilayer nexus among inter-related international and regional security parameters that critically define the EU’s rapidly changing security environment. In terms of intensity, complexity and urgency these changes constitute challenges that threaten the very core of European security – both internal and external. In a fluid and transitional international environment of diversified needs and polymorphic threats the space dimension acquires a novel unified meaning. The book closely examines the EU’s current strategic, organisational and defence capabilities regarding global, regional and domestic challenges such as terrorism, systemic instability, global order and a number of crucial hindrances to transatlantic cooperation. The chapters offer not only valuable theoretical insights, but also unique perspectives on operational and organisational elements of EU applied policies based on the testimonies of field experts. The combination of theory-based approaches and the demonstration of the EU’s operational capabilities and weaknesses as externalized through its global strategy choices provide an overall evaluation of adopted policies and their effects. This is crucial in a global transition period that will define the EU’s role and its potential to produce desired outcomes through synergies with its strategic allies.