The European Union’s Policy towards the Caucasus, 1996–99

Abstract

The following chapter seeks to analyse the European Union’s (EU) main political and economic policies towards the Caucasus. In particular, the chapter will focus on key joint actions and related political and economic policies. The specific focus of the chapter, however, is on EU policy towards emerging markets in oil and gas production in the Caucasus. The Union’s policy vis-a-vis the Caucasus is primarily driven, as the evidence below highlights, by economic and technical considerations. This will form the major area of inquiry of the present analysis. The chapter will also consider EU policy-making towards the Caucasus with special reference to agenda-setting, decision-making and the implementation of key joint actions and related policies. Specifically, the chapter focuses on process, relationships between joint actions and related policies as an unusual policy-making method, actor behaviour, and policy outcomes. Finally, the chapter will test the extent to which the policy process was characterized by degrees of rationality, bounded rationality, policy networks and/or garbage can agenda-setting, decision-making, and policy implementation.