This lecture and seminar has introductory character.

The topics which we will deal with in the course will be briefly presented and introduced and the course requirements will be explained.

In the second part of the meeting the EU as an actor in world politics and in its neighbourhood will be discussed. We will point out to the perspectives and achievements of the EU neighbourhood policy, but also to the limits, which exists concerning the EU´s actions. The problems of coherence in the CFSP (vertical, institutional and horizontal coherence) in post-Lisbon and in relation to the EU eastern neighbourhood will be discussed. The seminar then also deals with the assessment of EU´s "actorness" in international politics and in the eastern neighbourhood (the concepts of "civilian power", "normative power", „market power“ etc. and their application in the context of the EU´s activities in its neighbourhood, with special emphasis on the Eastern dimension of the EU neighbourhood policy).

In the seminar discussion will also try to look at the achievements, but also at the existing problems and shortcomings of the European Neighbourhood Policy (with the emphasis on the Eastern Partnership policy).

Basic questions for the discussion: Which role(s) should the EU play (as an actor) in its eastern neighbourhood? Should the EU primarily play a role of a normative actor, that tries to spread and support certain norms/values in its neighbourhood? Or should it rather play a role of an economic actor (primarily) and trade partner? Should the EU be more ambitious as a security actor in its neighbourhood (taking also into the account current context of the conflict in Ukraine)? Why yes/not?

In which areas of the EU neighbourhood policy is the EU successful/unsuccessful (with emphasis on the eastern neighbourhood)? Is there time now for some fundamental changes in the EU´s approach towards its eastern neighbourhood? (Also in the context of current turbulent events and conflict in eastern Europe).

Recommended links:

EEAS: European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) (https://eeas.europa.eu/diplomatic-network/european-neighbourhood-policy-enp_en)
EEAS: Eastern Partnership (https://eeas.europa.eu/diplomatic-network/eastern-partnership_en)

For the discussion:
Find the following studies/blogs:

·    

·       Josep Borrell: A year of war and energy and climate crises, 02/01/2023. EEAS homepage. On-line: https://www.eeas.europa.eu/eeas/year-war-and-energy-and-climate-crises_en

·      Irina Petrova & Laure Delcour (2020) From principle to practice? The resilience–local ownership nexus in the EU Eastern Partnership policy, Contemporary Security Policy, 41:2, 336-360, DOI: 10.1080/13523260.2019.1678280 

Hosa, J.; Kelmendi T. and Slunkin P. (2021): The young and the restless: Europe, Russia, and the next generation of diplomats in the Eastern Partnership. Policy Brief. European Council on Foreign Relations. 8 November 2021. On-line: https://ecfr.eu/publication/the-young-and-the-restless-europe-russia-and-the-next-generation-of-diplomats-in-the-eastern-partnership/

·       Pernille Rieker and Marianne Riddervold (2022) Not so unique after all? Urgency and norms in EU foreign and security policy, Journal of European Integration, 44:4, 459-473, DOI: 10.1080/07036337.2021.1977293

Try to think about the answers of following questions: What should be the most important priorities for the EU´s common foreign policy and security nowadays? Which role should the EU play internationally? What are (in your view) the most important threats and challenges, which the EU faces as an international actor now? Do these challenges rest only in current security and geopolitical reality in EU eastern neighbourhood, or are there also some other important problems, dimensions, threats, which we may overlook now? Be prepared to discuss these problems in the class.

 
Further recommended readings:

• Gebhard, C. (2017): The Problem of Coherence in the European Union´s International Relations. In Hill, Christopher; Smith, Michael and Vanhoonacker, Sophie (eds.; 2017): International Relations and the European Union. Third Edition. Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 123-142 (19 pages)
  
• Lavenex, S. (2017): "On the fringes of the European peace project: The neighbourhood policy’s functionalist hubris and political myopia." The British Journal of Politics and International Relations, 2017, Vol. 19(1) 63–76. (14 stran)
• Sjursen, H. (2017): Principles in European Union Foreign Policy. In Hill, Christopher; Smith, Michael and Vanhoonacker, Sophie (eds.; 2017): International Relations and the European Union. Third Edition. Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 443-462 (19 pages)

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