Political Dimensions of an Externalization of the EU’s Internal Market. College of Europe EU Diplomacy Paper 3/2007, June 2007

Gstöhl, Sieglinde. (2007) Political Dimensions of an Externalization of the EU’s Internal Market. College of Europe EU Diplomacy Paper 3/2007, June 2007.

Abstract

This paper takes stock of the European Union's attempts to 'externalize' its internal market and examines the political dimensions of this strategy. It shows that the policies, polity and politics of third countries' involvement with the internal market vary considerably. The 'export' of internal market norms is most extensive in the EU's neighbourhood such as the European Economic Area, the EU-Turkey customs union, the European Neighbourhood Policy or the Stabilization and Association Process. The author argues that the broader, the more institutionalized and acquis-based the relationship between the Union and a third country, the more likely it constitutes a deep, dynamic and tight form of cooperation which, as a consequence, is likely to raise legitimacy concerns for the EU's partners. These concerns for input legitimacy may only partially and in the short to medium term be balanced by increased output legitimacy.