Hans Wassmund: Die Europäische Union als internationaler Akteur

Abstract

The European Union as a global actor
For almost four decades matters of economic, financial and commercial relevance have clearly dominated the creation of a united Europe. Problems of international politics and security concerns have gained importance only during the last dozen years. The European Union – permanently growing both in member states and in spheres dealt with – has responded to this new global challenges by creating a level of a common European foreign policy above the national foreign policies. With the treaty of Lisbon chances have increased that the EU will far better be able to live up to its self image of expanding global importance and to satisfy the high expectations of its partners around the world concerning peace keeping actions and civil construction activities. The books reviewed argue that the institutions, competences and will powers of the Europeans have constantly grown over the last decade to play both regionally and globally a more important role than presently. At the same time these publications stress that there are plenty of crisises and set-backs ahead and serious problems to be dealt with. Chances have notwithstanding increased that the EU as a modern post-national actor of a new quality might play an important role in world affairs in the near future.

Besprochen werden u. a.:
Gaedtke, J.: Europäische Außenpolitik (470);  Fröhlich, S.: Die Europäische Union als globaler Akteur (471);  Jopp, M./Schlotter, P. (Hrsg.): Kollektive Außenpolitik (471); Gamble, A./Lane, D. (Hrsg.): The European Union and World Politics (473); Laidi, Z. (Hrsg.): EU Foreign Policy in a Globalized Word (473); Keukeleire, S./MacNaughtan, J.: The Foreign Policy of the European Union (475); Lucarelli, S./Fioramonti, L. (Hrsg.): External Perceptions of the European Union as a Global Actor (476)