Managing Change in External Relations: The EU's Window of Opportunity. EIPAscope 01/2011

Duke, Simon (2011) Managing Change in External Relations: The EU's Window of Opportunity. EIPAscope 01/2011. EIPAScope, 2011 (1). pp. 63-67. ISSN 1025-6253

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Abstract

There are a few moments in life when a crossroads is reached, necessitating a fundamental choice about the course to follow. Any decisions made at that juncture will have a decisive impact upon the future, for better or for worse. The EU is at such a point in its external action. The international order is being fundamentally reshaped by the emergence of influential actors (the BRIC countries are often automatically, and uncritically, mentioned in this regard) but also by influential non-state actors who act across borders and continents1. The exact nature of the emerging international system is far from clear – for some it is a complex multipolar system with different influences in particular policy areas or regions, but with no obvious hegemon; for others this looks suspiciously like a ‘nonpolar’ world promising disarray and potential competition (especially for resources)2.

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