The European Union and the promotion of democracy

Intro -- Contents -- List of Figures -- List of Tables -- List of Boxes -- Preface -- Abbreviations -- 1: Introduction -- A new normal -- An outside-in approach to EU foreign policy -- A conceptual framework for the new normal -- Part I: Background -- 2: The Evolution and Institutions of EU External Action -- Shaped by history: 1950 to 2010 -- Crisis years and beyond: 2010 to 2020 -- National foreign policies -- The EU external relations system -- Foreign policy positions and core diplomacy -- Security and conflict interventions -- Trade policy -- Development aid and external funding -- Conclusion -- 3: An Outside-in Framework for EU External Action -- Traditional analytical approaches -- Internal EU convergence -- Distinctive power -- Externalising the EU -- An outside-in framework for the new normal -- Conclusion -- Part II: Themes -- 4: Navigating the Reshaped International Order -- The challenges -- Defending liberal order -- Qualified multilateralist -- The US dilemma -- China as rival-partner -- Cooperation with other powers -- Themes and analysis -- Concluding summary -- 5: Europe and the Rise of Protective Security -- The challenges -- Defence upgraded -- Migration and external action -- Counter-terrorism -- Cyber-security -- Themes and analysis -- Concluding summary -- 6: Geo-Economic Europe -- The challenges -- Towards strategic trade policy -- Five trends towards strategic geo-economics -- Bilateral trade deals -- Less focus on multilateral trade liberalisation -- Soft protection -- Tougher market access conditions -- Investment screening -- EU support for European champions in international markets -- Commercial diplomacy and foreign investment -- The geo-economics of technology -- Themes and analysis -- Concluding summary -- 7: Enlargement and Its Limits -- The challenges -- The Balkans -- Turkey -- To accession and back.

This accessible new textbook situates the European Union in a dramatically changed world order. Resisting a more traditional and abstract introduction to the institutions, structures and policy making processes of the EU, this innovative new text cuts through the jargon to demonstrate how hard the EU must work to retain its international influence. Taking into account the latest empirical developments, including the spread of war and violence in the East with Ukraine and the ongoing turbulent politics of North Africa and the Middle East, Richard Youngs - an expert in the field - introduces us to how the EU has been forced to act differently. The book is unique in offering an outside-in conceptual framework that inverts the way that the EU external action is studied and understood. It unpacks the different international challenges the EU has faced in recent years, including the weakening of global order, the need for more protective security, geo-economic competition, climate change and conflicts to its east and south. In each case the book examines how the EU has responded and how its core international identity has changed as a result, assessing whether the Union still retains strong global influence.This book is the ideal companion for students taking modules on the European Union's foreign policy, global politics, and for students of European Union Politics more broadly at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels.