The European Union's External Policy II

Abstract

The EU is an actor in conflict prevention and peace-building in general, promoter of human rights, defender of maritime security with a specific focus on human trafficking. This panel discusses several themes which are connected to the above performance or role of the EU. It engages with some questions: Is the European Union Rule of Law Mission (EULEX) in Kosovo a positive example of operational conflict prevention, or does it confirm prevailing negative assessments? Do ‘effectiveness’ criteria and ‘success’ indicators help in providing responses? With regard to the development of the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) of the EU, to which extent is the ‘strategic culture approach’ useful to explain the CSDP ‘in action’? By contrast, in what way is the ‘domestic level approach’ contributing greater explanatory power? Concerning Russia’s dealing with human rights issues, has the EU and its external branch, the European External Action Service (EEAS), welcomed any positive change in Russia’s evolution in approaching the subject? Are there cases highlighting Russia’s human rights violations as an established trend? With respect to EU’s naval operations, do they reflect a securitising move of the European actor, explained by the convergence of factors, such as ‘opportunity’, ‘capacity’ and ‘presence’? Through a focus on several case studies – the EU’s Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo, the EU’s reaction to the 2011 Libyan crisis, Human Rights in Russia, the EU Naval Force Operations Atalanta and Sophia – this Panel examines the above questions.