Europe's Foreign Policy and the Middle East Peace Process: The Construction of EU Actorness in Conflict Resolution

Abstract

Relying on the ‘EU actorness’ framework, this article examines the relationship between the EU's evolving institutional capacity as an international actor and its performance as an external mediator in the Arab–Israeli conflict. It shows that the EU's actorness has progressed in terms of diplomatic ‘cohesion’, enhanced ‘horizontal coordination’ between CFSP and the EU's external economic relations, and the ‘surpanationalisation’ of EU foreign policy-making. On the whole, the strengthening of its actor capacity also allowed the EU to progressively expand its activities in conflict resolution, conflict prevention and conflict management. Still, important shortcomings in Europe's conflict resolution policy have remained and the EU finds it difficult to realize its full potential as an external mediator.

Key Words:

• Actorness
• European foreign policy
• CFSP
• conflict resolution
• Middle East conflict

Notes

¹ This longitudinal perspective is useful, as it shifts attention to important long-term trends in the evolution of Europe's foreign policy that easily escape studies focusing on the EU's response to single or isolated events.

² While the distinction between conflict resolution, prevention and management is useful at the conceptual level, in practice these methods and mechanisms often work hand in hand and are closely related.

³ Interview with a senior EU official of the European External Action Service, December 2011.