Irish Diplomacy in a Time of Crisis and the Evolution of a ‘European’ Diplomatic Service

Abstract

The foreign policies of several European states have been centrally engaged in national crisis management subsequent to the crisis in the euro-zone. In several instances this has included determined efforts to rebuild national credibility, intensively to engage with bilateral partners and multilateral agencies both in Europe and internationally and actively to contribute to trade promotion and the attraction of foreign direct investment as part of a programme of national economic recovery. In such a context, where a national diplomatic service is tasked with roles that can be seen to be addressing a near existential crisis for the state, what if any role does foreign policy coordination at EU level play? If such coordination played a marginal role or was non-existent, what does this say about the utility and purpose of EU foreign policy? To what extent does this necessarily delimit or define the potential added-value of the EEAS to national diplomatic services? The proposed paper will conduct a detailed analysis of Irish diplomacy in a time of crisis (2008-2014), assess its response to that crisis, evaluate the role of EU-level foreign policy coordination and finally offer conclusions as to what this may suggest for the future of EU foreign policy.