"Negotiating unilateralism: deportation and interstate cooperation in Germany and the United States."

Ellermann, Antje. (2003) "Negotiating unilateralism: deportation and interstate cooperation in Germany and the United States.". In: UNSPECIFIED, Nashville, Tennessee. (Unpublished)

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Abstract

In the field of migration policy, the achievement of domestic policy priorities often depends critically on cooperation with other states. Looking at the cases of Germany and the United States, this paper ask how interstate cooperation shapes state capacities in a policy field high on the agenda at the EU's 2002 Seville summit: "deportation policy." As European and North American states endeavor to implement measures of migration control, deportation efforts are increasingly frustrated not by by domestic obstacles, but by the refusal of foreign governments to issue documents for repatriation. Strategies to secure interstate cooperation are most evident in the arena of bilateral diplomacy. However, examining only formal processes, I argue, does not tell us much about the efficacy of cooperation. Instead, the paper examines bureaucratic strategies devised by immigration officials at the level of "implementation." I argue that this informal venue can allow for interstate cooperation in instances where formal cooperation is not possible. By working at a policy level that is largely invisible to the domestic and international public, administrative officials can exercise power where the hands of diplomats are tied.

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