Far from being a uniform and homogeneous policy field, negotiations in EU foreign and defence policy (CFSP/CSDP) involve different tactics, instruments and practices. Veto threats, issue-linkages, argumentation and persuasion, all coexist – albeit with different emphases and incidence. This paper investigates the factors that explain the variation in negotiation practices. Under what circumstances, and by what actors, are veto threats, integrative bargaining, arguments more frequently employed? Using an original database of 138 questionnaires compiled by national officials participating in CFSP/CSDP committees, it explores, in particular, whether contextual factors (e.g., belonging to different committees) and/or state characteristics influence the Council negotiation practices. In this vein, it also introduces a new set of explanatory variables, and argues that negotiation styles are also affected by the micro-level – by the individual characteristics of the single decision-makers. Contextual and state factors are filtrated by diplomats’ personal and professional experiences.
