Common Foreign and Security Policy Alignment in the Southern Caucasus: Convergence, ‘Pick and Choose’ or Indifference?

Abstract

This article examines the issue of Common Foreign and Security Policy alignment—a procedure by which governments from the European Union's neighbourhood may support previously adopted Common Foreign and Security Policy documents. It provides a comparative theory test of Common Foreign and Security Policy alignment in Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan. In doing so it seeks to elucidate why they engage in alignment as well as how cross-country and cross-issue variance can be theorised. After reviewing the explanatory potential of power-based and sociological institutionalist theory, domestic variables are assessed. The essay shows that, contrary to frequently expressed assumptions, convergence is even possible in less institutionalised high politics fields. But it emphasises that it is largely conditioned by domestic institutional configurations, the preferences of individual or collective actors and overall state gains.

Notes

The author is grateful to Tanja A. Börzel, Julia Langbein, Terry Cox and the two anonymous reviewers for helpful comments on earlier drafts of this essay.

¹ Besides the southern Caucasus states these are Ukraine and Moldova (but not Belarus); the candidate countries Macedonia and Turkey; the countries of the Stabilisation and Association Process Albania, Bosnia & Hercegovina, Montenegro and Serbia; and the members of the European Free Trade Association Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway (but not Switzerland).

² Some CFSP joint actions, supported by then EU accession countries before 2004, focused on international diplomatic initiatives such as reform of the nuclear non-proliferation treaty or combating the spread of small weapons.

³ This very fact supports the view that CFSP alignment is more than just cheap talk; if this were really the case, why do we not consistently observe full alignment?

⁴ CFSP alignment in fact does not imply any direct security gains for eastern neighbourhood countries. Only EU members benefit from the mutual defence clause which the Lisbon Treaty of 2009 has introduced. It can be argued, however, that strong adherence to foreign and security related EU objectives—ceteris paribus—increases the likelihood for solidarity and support.

⁵ For the emergence and operation of the ENP, see Dannreuther (2004) and Whitman and Wolff (2010).

⁶ Aligned countries appear by name in the respective documents. For instance, the binding formula ending each EU declaration neighbourhood countries have aligned with reads ‘align themselves with this declaration’.

⁷ The EU's PSC monitors the international situation and has preparatory functions for documents to be adopted.

⁸ Figures for this and the following percentages in this section were taken from the respective EC Progress and Country Reports. See European Commission (2008a, 2008b, 2008c, 2009a, 2009b, 2009c, 2010a, 2010b, 2010c, 2011a, 2011b, 2011c, 2011d).

⁹ Data on Armenia for 2008 have not been published in the Progress Report.

¹⁰ Author's survey by inspection of declarations by the High Representative on the alignment of third countries with Council Decisions. Source: CFSP Statements, Council of the European Union Homepage, available at: http://www.consilium.europa.eu/App/newsroom/loadbook.aspx?BID = 73&LANG = en&cmsid = 257, accessed 22 June 2012.

¹¹ The exceptions being a declaration on the occasion of World Press Freedom Day and a declaration on the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.

¹² Author's survey by inspection of declarations by the High Representative on the alignment of third countries with Council Decisions. Source: CFSP Statements, Council of the European Union Homepage, available at: http://www.consilium.europa.eu/App/newsroom/loadbook.aspx?BID = 73&LANG = en&cmsid = 257, accessed 22 June 2012.

¹³ Author's survey by inspection of declarations by the High Representative on the alignment of third countries with Council Decisions. Source: CFSP Statements, Council of the European Union Homepage, available at: http://www.consilium.europa.eu/App/newsroom/loadbook.aspx?BID = 73&LANG = en&cmsid = 257, accessed 22 June 2012.

¹⁴ Founded in 2002. Its precursor is the CIS Collective Security Treaty which was created in 1992.

¹⁵Charter of the Collective Security Treaty Organization, signed on 7 October 2002 in Chisinau, translated into English, available at: http://untreaty.un.org/unts/144078_158780/5/9/13289.pdf, accessed 1 April 2011.

¹⁶ Author's survey by inspection of declarations by the High Representative on the alignment of third countries with Council Decisions. Source: CFSP Statements, Council of the European Union Homepage, available at: http://www.consilium.europa.eu/App/newsroom/loadbook.aspx?BID = 73&LANG = en&cmsid = 257, accessed 22 June 2012.

¹⁷ The creation of the ICC has been largely put forward by the EU, and all members are signatories. The establishment of the Court is a considerable step towards an international criminal law which would ultimately represent a liberal legal system emphasising the rights of the accused over political interests.

¹⁸ With regard to acceding Eastern European countries it could be observed that the closer an accession country was to the prospect of full membership, the higher its rate of alignment with CFSP positions was. See Regelsberger (2003).

¹⁹ ‘Georgia Moves Closer to the EU by Aligning with it on International Arena’, The Georgian Times, 11 June 2006.

²⁰ ‘External Trade of Georgia by Countries, January–April 2011’, National Statistics Service of Georgia, available at: http://www.geostat.ge/index.php?action = page&p_id = 137&lang = eng, accessed 31 May 2011.

²¹ ‘External Trade of Georgia by Countries, January–April 2011’, National Statistics Service of Georgia, available at: http://www.geostat.ge/index.php?action = page&p_id = 137&lang = eng, accessed 31 May 2011.

²² ‘Armenia: Westward Foreign-Policy Shift Brings Unease in Iran’, EurasiaNet, 4 October 2002, available at: http://www.rferl.org/content/article/1100962.html, accessed 2 September 2014.

²³ ‘Armenian Opposition Leader Unhappy about Foreign Policy’, ArmInfo, 21 August 2004, available at: http://www.armeniandiaspora.com/showthread.php?8514-Armenian-opposition-leader-unhappy-about-foreign-policy, accessed 2 September 2014.

²⁴ ‘Armenian Opposition Party Concerned about New Deal with Russia’, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 24 August 2010, available at: http://www.rferl.org/content/Armenian_Opposition_Party_Concerned_About_New_Deal_With_Russia/2136581.html, accessed 2 September 2014.

²⁵ ‘Yerevan Says, “Russia is Our Military Choice, EU Our Economic”’, interview with Armenian Deputy Foreign Minister Shavarsh Kocharyan, Asbarez, 12 August 2013, available at: http://asbarez.com/112699/armenian-deputy-fm-russia-is-our-military-choice-eu-our-economic/, accessed 2 September 2014.

²⁶ Founded in 1961 in Belgrade, the Non-Aligned Movement is an organisation of states (including Indonesia, Cuba, Colombia or Egypt) which are not officially allied with or against any major power bloc.

²⁷ Interview with Russian radio station Ekho Moskvy, 22 December 2006. Full text of the interview in Russian is available at: www.echo.msk.ru/programs/beseda/48358/, accessed 21 August 2011.

²⁸ ‘Azerbaijan to Strengthen Ties with Russia—Ilham Aliyev’, interview with Ilham Aliyev, News.Az, 12 April 2011, available at: http://www.news.az/articles/politics/34227, accessed 24 June 2011.

²⁹ The exceptions are a declaration on the occasion of World Press Freedom Day and a declaration on the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.

³⁰ Email correspondence with Jerome Pons, Head of Section, Political, Economics, Press & Information, European Union Delegation to Azerbaijan, Baku, 26 May 2011.