The European Union's Strategic Partnerships : Global Diplomacy in a Contested World

This book provides a critical and updated analysis of the nature of the EU’s strategic partnership diplomacy, and of the partnerships themselves, in times of power shift and contestation. It links with key aspects of the EU’s Global Strategy; it brings together a strong list of experts who work within a clear framework for analysis; and it deals not only with the substance of the policy but also with the ways in which the policy as a whole has emerged, is conducted and might develop in the future. In offering an inclusive set of case studies and diverse perspectives, this book aims to advance both conceptualization and analysis of the implementation of the established EU partnerships. The book highlights the notion of strategic partnership as a foreign policy instrument to support EU external action in a context of multilevel change and crisis; its policy dimension as a gradually separated, but not separable policy within the Union’s external action; the institutional component given the emergence of SPs as a sort of self-preserving institutional platform allowing for denser and deeper cooperation in various policy areas; and the implications for the EU’s self-conception as an international actor with a global identity and role. Contents 7 Notes on Contributors 10 Abbreviations 17 List of Figures 21 List of Tables 22 1 Introducing the European Union’s Strategic Partnerships: Global Diplomacy in a Contested World 23 The Strategic Partnerships Within the Field of European Foreign Policy 31 Focus and Content of the Volume 34 References 37 Part I Strategic Partnerships in the European Union’s Diplomatic Practice: Evolution and Analysis 40 2 Strategic Partnerships in European Union External Action: Evolution and Analysis of a Developing Policy Instrument 41 Introduction 41 The European Union’s Strategic Partnerships: From the European Strategic Security Strategy to the Global Strategy and Beyond 42 Strategic Partnerships in Time of Crisis 50 Analysing Strategic Partnerships: Logics and Images 54 Logics 54 Images 58 Themes, Frameworks and Theories 62 Conclusions 63 References 64 3 Institutional Perspectives on the EU’s Strategic Partnerships: Where Is the Focus and Authority? 68 Introduction 68 A Lack of Overarching Goal Formulation for EU Strategic Partnerships 71 Diverging Frameworks—A Plethora of ‘Strategic Partnerships’ 74 Institutional Complexity and EU Strategic Partnerships 78 Conclusion 83 References 85 4 Soft Power in the European Union’s Strategic Partnership Diplomacy: The Erasmus Plus Programme 88 Introduction 88 The Erasmus+ Programme and the EU’s Soft Power Operation in the World 91 The Erasmus+ Programme and Strategic Partnerships: The Cases of Brazil and Russia 100 Brazil 101 Russia 105 Conclusion 108 References 111 Part II The Transatlantic Partners: The United States and Canada 114 5 The European Union and the United States: Competition, Convergence and Crisis in a Strategic Relationship 115 Introduction 115 After the Cold War: Building a Strategic Partnership? 118 The Anatomy of a Transatlantic Crisis: 2001–2009 121 A More Strategic Relationship? 2009–2017 123 Crisis and Breakdown: 2016–2020 127 Conclusions: A Strategic Relationship, But Not a Strategic Partnership? 130 References 134 6 The EU-Canada Strategic Partnership: Challenges and Opportunities 139 Introduction 140 What Is the Canada-EU Strategic Partnership Agreement? a Review of the Literature on the Canada-EU Relations 142 Evaluating the Strategic Partnership 151 Conclusion 158 References 161 Part III Strategic Partnerships with the BRICS 167 7 European Union-Brazil Relations: A Strategic Partnership in Suspended Animation 168 Introduction 168 The Short History of the EU-Brazil Strategic Partnership: Key Motivations, Major Themes, Policy Areas and the Institutional Dimension 170 Crises as the Order of the Day: The European Union and Brazil Under Stress 177 2015–2020: Five Years, Five Missed Opportunities for Revamping Bilateral Cooperation 183 Conclusion 187 References 189 8 The End of Ambiguity: Excavating the Remains of the EU–Russia ‘Strategic Partnership’ 193 Introduction 194 From an Unambiguous Starting Point to ‘the Proliferation of the Fuzzy’ 196 The Internal EU and Russian Logics and Dynamics 199 The EU–Russia Strategic Partnership in a Triangular Setting 204 Conclusions 207 References 210 9 The European Union and India: A Reluctant Partnership Between Aspiring Global Powers 214 Introduction 214 Process Tracing the EU-India Strategic Partnership 217 The ‘Lost’ Decade of the 1990s 219 The 1999 Transformation: A Coincidental Juncture 221 Post-1999 Relations: Struggling to Define the Strategic Partnership 223 Conclusion 228 Bibliography 231 10 The European Union and China: Partnership in Changing Times 236 Introduction 236 The European Union and China: From Non-Relationship to ‘Comprehensive Strategic Partnership’ 238 The EU, China and the Return of Great Power Geopolitics 241 The EU, China and Asia: Beyond ‘China First’ 246 Global Challenges: Sino-European Convergence or Divergence? 249 Conclusion 252 References 254 11 The European Union-South Africa Strategic Partnership: Aligning Interests in a Multi-Layered Environment 260 Introduction 260 Contexts 263 South Africa as a Strategic Partner 269 The Regional Dimension 271 The Strategic Partnership in the Doldrums 275 Conclusion 278 References 279 Part IV Reaching Out for Strategic Partnerships Beyond the BRICS 281 12 The EU and Mexico: The Strategic Partnership in the Context of the Global Agreement 282 Introduction 282 Pragmatism and Adaptation 283 Strategic Partnership: A Political Framework 288 Institutional Dimension: The Global Agreement and the Strategic Partnership 292 Conclusions 295 References 299 13 The EU’s Strategic Partnerships with Japan and South Korea: A Comparative Analysis of the Drivers, Outcomes and Limitations 302 Introduction 302 Drivers of “Strategising” 304 The EU, Japan and ROK: A Comparison of Critical Drivers 304 Japan: Strategic Considerations 306 ROK: Strategic Considerations 308 From Cooperation to Strategic Partnership 309 The EU-Japan Case: Evolution and the Role of Conjuncture 309 The EU-ROK Case: A Matter of Strategic Choice and Negotiation 312 Agreements: Significance and Limitations 314 Significance of the Strategic Partnerships 314 Limitations of the Strategic Partnerships 316 Conclusions 319 References 321 14 Conclusions: The Rise and Fall of an Idea 324 The Globalisation of Partnership Diplomacy 325 Europe’s Way: Partnering Without Pattern 330 Assessing the EU’s Strategic Partnerships 333 References 335 Index 337 This timely collection is an important contribution to our understanding of the EU's international relations during the last quarter century. Strategic Partnerships have increasingly become the neglected child of the EU foreign policy family. This volume is thus of historic and contemporary relevance. Martin Holland, Professor and Jean Monnet Chair ad personam, University of Canterbury, New Zealand At a time when the EU is struggling to position itself in a rapidly changing world, this comprehensive study of Strategic Partnerships is a very welcome contribution to our understanding of EU global diplomacy. Sophie Vanhoonacker, Professor of Administrative Governance, Maastricht University, The Netherlands With its focus on Strategic Partnerships, this book provides analysts studying Europe's global role with overdue attention to an under-examined aspect of the EU's diplomacy. The volume's great strength is its comprehensiveness. Richard Whitman, Professor of Politics and International Relations, University of Kent, UK This book aims to provide a critical analysis of the nature of the EU's strategic partnership diplomacy, and of the partnerships themselves, in the conditions of the 2020s. It links with key aspects of the EU's Global Strategy; it brings together a strong list of experts who work within a clear framework for analysis; and it deals not only with the substance of the policy but also with the ways in which the policy as a whole has emerged, is conducted and might develop in the future. Laura C. Ferreira Pereira is Professor of Political Science and International Relations at the University of Minho, Portugal; and Visiting Professor of the University of São Paulo, Brazil. Michael Smith is Honorary Professor in European Politics at the University of Warwick, and Emeritus Professor of European Politics at Loughborough University, UK This timely collection is an important contribution to our understanding of the EUs international relations during the last quarter century. Strategic Partnerships have increasingly become the neglected child of the EU foreign policy family. This volume is thus of historic and contemporary relevance. Martin Holland, Professor and Jean Monnet Chair ad personam, University of Canterbury, New Zealand At a time when the EU is struggling to position itself in a rapidly changing world, this comprehensive study of Strategic Partnerships is a very welcome contribution to our understanding of EU global diplomacy. Sophie Vanhoonacker, Professor of Administrative Governance, Maastricht University, The Netherlands With its focus on Strategic Partnerships, this book provides analysts studying Europes global role with overdue attention to an under-examined aspect of the EUs diplomacy. The volumes great strength is its comprehensiveness. Richard Whitman, Professor of Politics and International Relations, University of Kent, UK This book aims to provide a critical analysis of the nature of the EUs strategic partnership diplomacy, and of the partnerships themselves, in the conditions of the 2020s. It links with key aspects of the EUs Global Strategy; it brings together a strong list of experts who work within a clear framework for analysis; and it deals not only with the substance of the policy but also with the ways in which the policy as a whole has emerged, is conducted and might develop in the future. Laura C. Ferreira Pereira is Professor of Political Science and International Relations at the University of Minho, Portugal; and Visiting Professor of the University of Sao Paulo, Brazil. Michael Smith is Honorary Professor in European Politics at the University of Warwick, and Emeritus Professor of European Politics at Loughborough University, UK