ABSTRACT
Introduction The aim of this chapter is to shed light on the debate on the EU as a state-builder. The chapter starts by offering an overview of the distinctive role of the EU as a state-builder and the multilevel context in which the EU is playing this role, which is closely linked with liberal ideas. In this section, it is argued that the EU has adopted a direct state-building role mainly in cases of ‘contested statehood’. The second section offers an analysis of the different tools and policies that the EU has at its disposal in order to be an effective state-builder. This part also offers an overview of the EU’s approach to the state-building project carried out in the Western Balkans and looks at how the EU has operationalised statebuilding in Bosnia and Kosovo. These two sections have a direct relevance to this book’s case study because on the one hand a number of common characteristics of the EU’s approach to state-building can be observed and on the other hand lessons from Kosovo, which can be characterised as a ‘contested statehood’ case can be drawn with regard to the OPTs, which is another case of ‘contested statehood’. The final part defines the parameters upon which the EU’s effectiveness as a state-builder will be tested. Taking into account not only the ‘endproduct’ but also the ‘process’, this section proposes three parameters upon which the effectiveness of the EU as a state-builder will be tested: namely, generation of legitimacy, coherence and regulation of violence/ability of enforcement. The chapter concludes by elaborating on some important elements, which arise from these three parameters.
