Chapter Six Constitutional Requirements for EU Peacebuilding

Abstract

This chapter discusses the legal constraints on European Union (EU) external action in peace-building posed by the EU's constitutional architecture. It includes an appraisal of this architecture under the Nice Treaty in the light of the Court of Justice's jurisprudence, as well as of the respective provisions as amended by the Treaty of Lisbon. Therein possible interpretations of the new non-affection provision are discussed. The chapter explains why the Court's jurisprudence is difficult to reconcile with the actual practice in EU peace-building, thereby revealing the accuracy of one of the Court's main findings, namely the neutrality of institution building. The Treaty of Lisbon has maintained the dualism in EU external action, and the European Union's constitutional architecture continues to be such that a distinction between Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) and non-CFSP external action remains necessary.Keywords: Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP); European Union (EU); Nice Treaty; Treaty of Lisbon