ABSTRACT
The European Union (EU), with twenty-seven member states, over 450 million citizens, a total gross domestic product (GDP) greater than that of the United States, and the world’s largest trading block, is an influential international economic force, with both positive (development aid, loans, free-trade agreements, potential membership) and negative (embargo, tariffs, withdrawal of aid) means of economic influence. Such means are frequently effective in promoting political goals such as regional stability, democracy and human rights (Zielonka, 1998a; Solana, 2005). However, these capabilities have not always proven sufficient. In fact, the inability of the EU to address the wider and more diverse set of security threats that have come to dominate the international system-humanitarian crises, migration, ethnic conflicts, civil war, and various types of terrorist activities-has given rise to criticisms of the paradoxical nature of the union: striving for a strategic impact on Europe and elsewhere without any specific strategy; aspiring to be a powerful international actor while rejecting ideas of a European supra-state; favoring strong Atlantic ties coupled with strong autonomous institutions; and, critically, aspiring to prevent and manage crises without the political determination to acquire the means necessary to do so (Zielonka,1998a, 11; 1998b, Introduction; Sandström, 1998; Ojanen, 2000).
