1st Edition
Civilian or Military Power? European Foreign Policy in Perspective
This text critically examines the belief that the EU not only has an impact on the international system but also a ‘normative’, ‘civilian’ and ‘civilizing’ power. The contributors question whether this assertion fits with the empirical record or is merely based on anecdotal evidence and whether there is a theoretical basis for the expectation of a ‘normative’ or ‘civilizing’ power. Moving the research agenda forward, the book establishes criteria and assessment standards for examining the EU’s international role and its putative normative dimension. Such an endeavour is particularly important against the backdrop of recent developments in European security and defence. The acquisition of military means, or the EU’s ambition to acquire such means, might weaken at least the argument that the EU is a ‘civilian’ power and could provoke a shift towards a policy more akin to traditional ‘great powers.'
This book was previously published as a special issue of the Journal of European Public Policy.
1 What kind of power? Helene Sjursen. 2 Normative power Europe reconsidered: beyond the crossroads. Ian Manners. 3 The democratic control of military power Europe. Wolfgang Wagner. 4 ‘Normative’ power Europe: a realist critique. Adrian Hyde-Price. 5 The EU as a ‘normative’ power: how can this be? Helene Sjursen. 6 The EU – a cosmopolitan polity? Erik Oddvar Eriksen. 7 Anchoring Europe’s civilizing identity: habits, capabilities and ontological security. Jennifer Mitzen. 8 ‘Our size fits all’ normative power Europe and the Mediterranean. Federica Bicchi. 9 Normative by nature? The role of coherence in justifying the EU’s external human rights policy. Marika Lerch and Guido Schwellnus 10 Comment: Crossroads or cul-de-sac? Reassessing European foreign policy. Michael Smith.
Biography
Helene Sjursen is Senior Researcher at Arena – Centre for European Studies, University of Oslo, Norway. She has written extensively on international relations, in particular on the foreign and security policy of the European Union, and on the question of EU enlargement.
