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The Post-brexit European Union and Multilateralism: Evolution and Challenges in the European Perception of Power

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Crisis of Multilateralism? Challenges and Resilience

Abstract

The return of power politics and the potential emergence of a new bipolarity between the United States and China has led the European Union (EU) to question its approach to power and multilateralism over the last decade. If the EU has traditionally advocated for a multilateral world in which it could play the role of a “normative civilian” power, several crises have shaken this assumption and pushed toward a more assertive role for the EU in international relations, especially in international security. The annexation of Crimea in 2014, Brexit, and now the war in Ukraine have paved the way for an intense evolution of EU’s vision of multilateralism, with a shift symbolized by the financing of weapons delivery to Ukraine in February 2022. But can EU’s claim for strategic autonomy and a more robust strategic role in multilateralism last over time? What are EU’s assets in today's multilateralism? What are the main limits to EU’s assertive action in a contentious world? This chapter will tackle these topics by focusing on the security and defense area so as to explain where the EU comes from as a power and where it might go within the new era of challenged multilateralism the world has entered.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    See the map of EU sanctions throughout the world: https://www.sanctionsmap.eu/#/main. Consulted on January 27, 2023.

  2. 2.

    The Petersberg tasks (adopted within the previous framework of the WEU in 1992 and integrated into the Lisbon Treaty) fall into three categories: humanitarian tasks, peacekeeping or peace-enforcement tasks, and armed intervention in crises for the purpose of peacemaking, in collaboration with the UN, NATO and the CSCE.

  3. 3.

    https://www.eeas.europa.eu/eeas/missions-and-operations_en Consulted on April 19, 2023.

  4. 4.

    https://www.eeas.europa.eu/eeas/global-strategy-european-unions-foreign-and-security-policy_en Consulted on April, 19 2023.

  5. 5.

    https://data.consilium.europa.eu/doc/document/ST-7371-2022-INIT/en/pdf Consulted on January 26, 2023.

  6. 6.

    The table was produced by the author. The key words are presented in order of decreasing occurrence. The ones in bold present the most significant variations when comparing the three documents.

  7. 7.

    For an interesting analysis on the role of the perception of the other in EU’s external action, see (Rumelili, 2021).

  8. 8.

    We do not wish to enter into debate about the strength of European opinion here, as it would take us too far away from the purpose of this chapter. See (Galantino, 2015).

  9. 9.

    http://ec.europa.eu/commfrontoffice/publicopinion/index.cfm/Survey/getSurveyDetail/instruments/STANDARD/yearFrom/1991/yearTo/2000/surveyKy/1425. Accessed 19 January 2023.

  10. 10.

    https://www.europarl.europa.eu/at-your-service/files/be-heard/eurobarometer/2016/europeans-in-2016-perceptions-and-expectations/analytical-overview/fr-analytical-overview-europeans-in-2016.pdf Accessed 19 January 2023.

  11. 11.

    http://ec.europa.eu/commfrontoffice/publicopinion/index.cfm/Survey/getSurveyDetail/instruments/SPECIAL/yearFrom/1974/yearTo/2016/search/463/surveyKy/2173 Accessed 19 January 2023.

  12. 12.

    https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/ebsm/api/public/deliverable/download?doc=true&deliverableId=84907 Accessed 19 January 2023.

  13. 13.

    https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/ebsm/api/public/deliverable/download?doc=true&deliverableId=82356 Accessed 19 January 2023.

  14. 14.

    Yet these surveys entail many caveats as people are not asked whether they agree with being taxed further to finance a stronger EU foreign and defence policy for instance. For more information on these caveats, see (Galantino, 2015).

  15. 15.

    The “Normandy Format” designates the diplomatic negotiation model between Russia, Ukraine, France and Germany during the Ukrainian conflict 2014–2015.

  16. 16.

    Russia evicted three EU diplomats on the very day of Josep Borrel’s visit to Moscow.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Political Science, University Grenoble Alpes, CESICE, Grenoble, France

    Delphine Deschaux-Dutard

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  1. University of Paris 8, Paris, France

    Auriane Guilbaud

  2. Institute of Political Studies, University of Grenoble Alps, Grenoble, France

    Franck Petiteville

  3. Sciences Po, Paris, France

    Frédéric Ramel

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Deschaux-Dutard, D. (2023). The Post-brexit European Union and Multilateralism: Evolution and Challenges in the European Perception of Power. In: Guilbaud, A., Petiteville, F., Ramel, F. (eds) Crisis of Multilateralism? Challenges and Resilience. The Sciences Po Series in International Relations and Political Economy. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-39671-7_8

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