EU Intervention Research Articles

Women, Peace and Security in EU Interventions: Analysing EULEX and Operation Irini

ABSTRACT This article examines the implementation of the Women, Peace and Security agenda in the practice of EU-led missions: the EULEX Kosovo and the EUNAVFOR MED IRINI. It relies on qualitative research methods for analysing four elements (mandate, operational environment, in-theatre gender expertize, and gender mainstreaming). This article highlights that the same institutional approach might lead to fundamentally different results. The distinct natures of the missions point towards different EU roles in gender mainstreaming, which can be either foundational elements, such as in the case of EULEX Kosovo, or complementary, as in a maritime military operation with limited implementation opportunities.

The Europeanization of Wage Policy and Its Consequences for Labor Politics: The Case of Ireland

This article investigates the transnational labor politics associated with the Europeanization of wage policy, based on process tracing of Irish minimum wage regulation reforms over the past two decades. The policy struggle in Ireland started as an employer-led domestic challenge to market-embedding regulation and was then affected by two EU interventions on wage policy: one with a de-regulatory orientation (during EU-IMF conditionality) and one with a re-regulatory one (with the approval of the EU minimum wage directive). Findings show that differences in collective action undertaken by employers and trade unions to influence wage policy at the national level can be explained by the intersection of each actor’s preferences toward market-constraining or liberalizing labor regulation and their access to supranational (EU-level) institutions and support. This analysis contributes to debates on how transnational opportunity structures can alter labor’s and employers’ local power resources and strategies.

Enforcing the rule of law in the EU: effects on public opinion

ABSTRACT How does the European Union's enforcement of democracy and rule-of-law standards influence the domestic public's attitudes toward backsliding governments? On the one hand, enforcement actions by international organisations may increase the costs of supporting backsliding governments and provide informational cues about non-compliance with international norms. On the other hand, scholars and practitioners worry that enforcement actions create ‘rally-around-the-flag’ effects that inadvertently increase support for backsliding regimes. We report descriptive, experimental, and quasi-experimental results from a survey designed to assess the public-opinion effects of EU action in response to rule-of-law backsliding in Poland. The survey results suggest both that Polish citizens perceive the EU as a main critic of measures undermining judicial independence and that these perceptions are correlated with opposing the targeted measures. We find no evidence that additional information about EU actions turns public opinion against the targeted measures but there is also no evidence of any rally-around-the-flag effect. In diagnosing the null findings from our experimental and quasi-experimental designs, we also highlight important challenges associated with using survey-experimental methods to assess the effectiveness of EU interventions in ongoing and salient public debates.

The role of the European Union in third-country immigrant integration

This paper investigates the effectiveness of current approach to third-country immigrant integration in Europe and assesses the potential for increased EU involvement in shaping integration strategies. Analysing disparities in immigrants' treatment and rights across EU member states, the paper reveals barriers to achieving successful integration and equal rights. The paper contemplates the complex interplay between integration, national sovereignty, and rising nationalism, necessitating careful consideration in any proposed EU intervention. Ultimately, the paper underscores the importance of a comprehensive two-way approach to integration, grounded in respect and empathy, highlighting the potential for EU involvement to address systemic challenges and foster a more inclusive European society.

EHDS and Free Movement of Patients: What EU Intervention is Needed?

The European Commission issued a proposal for a Regulation on the European Health and Data Space to improve patient mobility. This EHDS Regulation lays down rules for the exchange of digital health data for primary use (treatment) and for secondary use (i.e. research, policymaking). This proposal has far-reaching implications for national healthcare systems. The question arises whether, with this draft, the Commission in fact proposes to overstep the powers of the European Union, as the delivery and organization of healthcare belongs to the competences of the Member States. Furthermore, the (lack of) exchange of digital health data is not the only hinderance for the free movement of patients. The current set-up of the Patient Directive and the Social Security Coordination Regulation also discourages patients from seeking treatment abroad. Therefore, a more integrated approach in the form of a new Patient Regulation is, in our view, needed.

Supranational responses to democratic backsliding: norm contestation and discursive polarisation in the European Parliament

ABSTRACT The European Parliament (EP) has repeatedly been criticised for its slow, insufficient response to democratic backsliding in several member states. At the same time, it is the arena where we find some of the most vigorous defences of the EU’s fundamental values and appeals to safeguard the rule of law across the Union. Leveraging an original dataset of MEP statements from plenary debates over the last two EP terms (2009–2019), this article examines the dynamics of norm contestation in the EP’s responses to democratic backsliding. We observe a discursive polarisation primarily along ideological lines, with a notable slippage among European People’s Party legislators who shift from scepticism towards EU intervention in rule of law matters to overt support. We show how Eurosceptic MEPs and those from backsliding countries seek to appeal to domestic voters by invoking negative partisanship and anti-Western resentment to discredit EU criticism. In contrast, pro-intervention MEPs situate their discourse at the supranational level and focus on defending European unity and the rule of law as shared identity. Overall, the growing contestation over the nature of fundamental values by Eurosceptics has crystallized a more vocal and differentiated engagement of Europhile MEPs in democratic backsliding debates.

Transnational cultural networks: soft mechanisms for cultural diversity and frictionless mobility

ABSTRACT Transnational networks in the cultural sector have expanded significantly in Europe over the last three decades. Nevertheless, although this phenomenon is fuelled by the EU’s cultural policy and corresponding funding initiatives, there is a noticeable lacuna in the academic literature on this issue. This article, therefore, examines the emergence and institutionalisation of these networks, shedding light on: 1) the relationship between networks’ evolution and the EU’s cultural policy discourse, and 2) networks and the Europeanisation process. To this end, the study employs a document analysis and uncovers three distinct policy clusters, with a shift from a transnational European identity to one of cultural diversity and a people-centered approach. These outcomes lead to an investigation of whether and how these discursive shifts are interconnected with the development of transnational networks. This conclusively reveals how their implementation is intricately linked not only to the foundational tenets of the EU’s cultural policy – the subsidiarity principle, but also to the broader context of EU policymaking. The article concludes that EU intervention in the cultural sector can be justified as a discursive agent in the evolving European public sphere, with significant implications for professionals, policymakers and scholars in the field.

Unravelling Next Generation EU As A Transformative Moment: From Market Integration To Redistribution

This article aims to understand the extent to which Next Generation EU (NGEU) can truly be considered a substantive change without a constitutional amendment. It draws on the concept of “constitutional transformation” to unravel what kind of informal change NGEU has introduced and how this affects the interpretation of formally unaltered provisions. To this end, given the crucial importance of Article 125 TFEU in the distributive pattern of resources within the EU and its role in the ideological construction of EU intervention in the economy, the article assesses NGEU against this provision, claiming that forms and objectives of Union financial assistance have changed thanks to a new politically-accepted interpretation of Article 125 TFEU. It is submitted that this new meaning of Article 125TFEU reflects a deeper change in the fundamental political telos of the Union, namely a shift from Member States’ integration through the market to redistribution through public intervention, with material implications for Member States’ financial liabilities.

Gendered insecurities: EU practices in countering violent extremism in Niger

ABSTRACT What kind and whose security is the European Union concerned with in its gender practices in countering violent extremism? This article contributes to the scholarship on EU implementation of the Women, Peace and Security agenda and gender in countering violent extremism, highlighting shortcomings in the conceptualisation and practice of women’s participation in the security sphere. Taking Niger as a heuristic case study, the paper explores tensions between local gender norms and EU securitised framing of women’s empowerment and gender equality, arguing that women’s increased participation in the security field is tacitly understood in terms of use-value. Building on feminist postcolonial scholarship, the analysis uncovers how women are included and what expectations they are deriving from their engagement, exposing the neoliberal and neocolonial framings of EU intervention and the misunderstandings of women’s materialities. By ontologically flattening women subjectivities without accounting for their intersectional experiences, both patriarchy and global hierarchies of knowledge production are reiterated. In doing so, the EU co-constructs gendered and racialised subjects, thus reinforcing inequalities, silencing local pluralities, and in many cases, aggravating women’s situation of insecurity in Niger. The analysis employs feminist and ethnographic methods, including semi-structured interviews and participant observation.

The relation between multiculturalism, interculturalism and cosmopolitanism in UK diversity politics

ABSTRACT This article assesses whether multiculturalism, interculturalism and cosmopolitanism find themselves in tension or, rather, coexist in UK politics. This is done through the analysis of recent policy and civil society documents, complemented with semi-structured interviews with race equality organizations. Results suggest a complementary relationship between these normative perspectives, with interculturalism and multiculturalism jointly shaping the central government’s policy as well as the discourse of civil society organizations. As for cosmopolitanism, it manifests itself primarily in civil society’s support for a more humane system for asylum seekers, as well as in the endorsement of EU intervention in the governance of cultural diversity.

A Road Not Taken? Perceptions of the EU as an Actor in the Bar-Boljare Highway Project

This study set out to shed light on the viewpoints and actions of EU actors surrounding the Montenegrin public debt increase as a result of the Bar-Boljare highway project. Therefore, four EU civil servants and five non-EU experts were asked about their perceptions of the EU as an actor in this case, and which actions it has taken or should best take. By comparing their expert opinions and by connecting them with other sources on the project and related subjects, the importance of professional research for policy-making is underlined. The paper argues that the perceived EU salience for and attitudes towards this transport project vary strongly between respondents. Expert interviewees differ in opinion on the gravity of the issue, with a possible presence of political bias. Multiple EU goals for this case were found in one or both of the interviewee categories, with most being socio-economic in nature. Finally, several potential institutions or initiatives are proposed for EU intervention in this issue, although case resolution by the Union is mostly seen as unlikely. Future research should point out if these conclusions are also supported by interviews with other relevant actors.

The Path towards the European University in the Current EU Legal Framework: the Unita – Universitas Montium Experience

The development of university cooperation at the European level is closely related both to the needs of the single market and to those of an economic and social cohesion functional to a more effective protection of the rights of European citizens. The recent launch of EU university alliances is part of this framework, although the absence of legal instruments explicitly conceived for institutionalised cooperation could undermine the success of the action of alliances. The EU competence in higher education is limited to the support, coordination, and supplement of member state actions (art. 6TFEU). The absence of a harmonising competence circumscribes the possibilities of EU intervention and especially prevents the provision of EU degrees which could replace national diplomas. However, the allocation of funding allows policies capable of effectively influencing the systems of member states (see for instance the EU experience in common agricultural policies sector). In this context, the limits of the existing tools could be almost partially overpassed by the adoption of new regulations or directives, to allow an institutionalised cooperation between universities. The existing solutions offered by the EU legal system are not fully satisfactory, nonetheless, some of them could be useful: among these, the European Economic Interest Grouping (EEIG) is especially interesting.

Article: EU-Israel Relations: Netanyahu’s Legacy

It is common to criticize the State of Israel for its lack of strategy. This is true with respect to its foreign relations, and with specific reference to her relations with the EU. This criticism was reinforced during the five terms of Benjamin Netanyahu’s premiership (1996–1999 and 2009–2021). Commentators expressed strong criticism of his leadership, blaming him for shaping and implementing Israel’s foreign relations in a non-strategic, incoherent, and inconsistent manner. This article provides an alternative perspective, arguing that during his five terms Netanyahu and his governments adopted and pursued a calculated and coherent policy towards the EU, which was aimed at mitigating EU intervention in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and at dismissing any manifestation of EU political criticism towards Israel. The article analyses his policy towards the EU and the main instruments adopted in order to promote it, through the prism of scholarship pertaining to speech-acts and Euroscepticism. Foreign relations, Speech-acts, Euroscepticism, EU-Israel relations, Benjamin Netanyahu

Resilience in EU crisis interventions in Ukraine: A complexity perspective

ABSTRACT The resilience approach has recently emerged as a new topic of EU foreign policy debates and research. This paper adopts a complexity theory perspective to analyze the operationalization of the resilience approach in the EU response to crisis in Ukraine during 2014–2021. Building upon this theory, this paper distinguishes between resilience-as-quality of a complex system and resilience-as-thinking about a complex system. The empirical analysis focuses on the complexity features of non-linearity and self-organizing localization of EU interventions undertaken in the framework of the Instrument contributing to Stability and Peace (IcSP). It concludes that the emerging system of intervention displays some complexity qualities, yet the EU crisis response follows the linear and top-down logic embedded in the project-based practices.

Combating piracy strategically: Analysing the successes and challenges of NATO and EU interventions off the Somali coast

ABSTRACT This study analyses the successes and challenges of NATO and EU interventions off the coast of Somalia. It begins with identifying the mandate of multinational naval missions to fight piracy. After discussing achievements and significant developments in anti-piracy operations, the paper scrutinises NATO’s successes and challenges in taking up the fight against piracy in the Horn of Africa region. The article continues with providing reasons for the EU’s involvement in combating Somali piracy and explains the need for the continuous expansion of Operation Atalanta’s mandate. It then elaborates on the EU’s successes and challenges with regards to addressing the threat of piracy off the Somali coast. The study argues that piracy can only be eliminated if multilateral coordination at sea and ashore is enhanced; law enforcement becomes more effective; operational information is more widely shared; and security capabilities are strengthened in the Horn of Africa region.

The Never‐Ending Road Towards the CEAS: Utopia, Teleology, and Depoliticisation in EU Asylum Policies

This article explores the temporal dimension of the Common European Asylum System (CEAS) by exposing its teleological character and the effects of the latter on the governance of asylum in the European Union. Drawing on EU policy documents, the article shows how the CEAS has been presented since its inception as a teleology, that is, a process that is inexorably unfolding towards a specific outcome to be reached in an indefinite time in the future. The outcome consists in the establishment of a common area of protection constituted by a level playing field in which asylum seekers and beneficiaries of international protection will be treated alike regardless of the place of residence. Such a teleological narrative informing the CEAS paves the way to overly optimistic expectations on the possibilities of implementation, which in turn result in an overestimation of the potential of harmonisation. By discussing the limitations of harmonisation in relation to the reception of asylum seekers, this article calls into question the possibility of a homogeneous area of protection where equivalent conditions are offered to all asylum seekers across the EU. Such a homogeneous space is utopian because harmonisation does not aim to eradicate differences but rather to mitigate them, thus tolerating diverse arrangements. The article, therefore, argues that the level playing field projected by the CEAS constitutes a promise that has two key effects: First, it depoliticises the CEAS itself by framing problems as technical issues, requiring technical solutions; second, it paves the way to further EU intervention in this field.

Party Views on Democratic Backsliding and Differentiated Integration

Both political parties and differentiated integration (DI) play an ambivalent role in regard to democratic backsliding. Parties’ positioning towards democratic backsliding has not always been straightforward, and DI has been seen as facilitating it. We analyse whether party actors view democratic backsliding as a problematic issue for the EU, if they think DI facilitates it, and how they consider the EU should respond to it. Drawing on thirty-five interviews and a survey of forty-two party actors in seven member states, we show that many do view backsliding as problematic. Moreover, around half worried that DI could facilitate backsliding, though others did not link the two. Finally, almost all considered it legitimate for the EU to address democratic backsliding. Although centre-of-left actors are most likely to worry about democratic backsliding and favour EU intervention, actors across the political spectrum are sceptical about accepting DI in matters pertaining to Article 2.

Thoughts on the EU Digital Single Market Strategy and the New Consumer Sales Directive

The paper describes the impact of the EU ‘Digital Single Market Strategy’ (DSMS) on consumer law. The essay analyses, in particular, the new Consumer Sales Directive [Directive (EU) 2019/771] and its recent transposition into Italian Law. Starting from the assumption that the Information-Digital Age certainly has social-economic impacts, therefore also legal ones, the paper first of all illustrates the Strategy promoted in 2015 by the European Commission. In order to represent how the Commission intends to face the new digital “revolution” and its economic opportunities, this essay — through a brief description of the main pillars of the DSMS — tries to circumscribe the outcomes of the Strategy and its correlation with the new legal regime proposed for the building of the so-called ‘Internal Market 2.0’. Moreover, the paper analyses the important role that consumer protection plays in relation to the European Commission’s DSMS. With this in mind, the article examines the main aspects of the so-called ‘New Deal for Consumers’ (NDC), promoted in 2018 by the Commission in order to accompany the implementation of certain parts of the DSMS. In this first part of the article, a sort of “toolbox” is offered to the reader with the purpose of developing a better understanding of the current EU trends in consumer law. Following this line of research, the second part of the article focuses on the Directive (EU) 2019/771 proposed by the European Commission to regulate certain aspects concerning contracts for the sale of goods. In the final section, the paper describes the principal characteristics of the Italian transposition of the New Consumer Sales Directive (NCSD), as implemented in November 2021. In the conclusion, the paper suggests that the most recent EU interventions on consumer law are still based on a traditional understanding of consumer protection and, with regard to certain aspects, do not appear to be very different from the previous legislation (this is the case of the so-called hierarchy of remedies).

Detention Conditions in the Issuing Member State as a Ground for Non-Execution of the European Arrest Warrant: State of Play and Challenges Ahead

In its Aranyosi and Căldăraru judgment, the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU) recognized explicitly for the first time the possibility for executing judicial authorities to deny the execution of European Arrest Warrants (EAWs) when there is a risk of breach of the requested person’s fundamental rights in the issuing Member State, more specifically, a risk relating to inhuman or degrading treatment because of the detention conditions. Two subsequent CJEU judgments brought complementary clarifications in this respect. These decisions have been welcomed as they have helped define the limits of the principle of mutual trust and finding a fair balance between the effectiveness of judicial cooperation in criminal matters and the protection of fundamental rights. However, they have also posed crucial challenges in EAW proceedings. Indeed, the CJEU’s Aranyosi and Căldăraru case-law raised for instance concerns as to the exact scope of this new ground for non-execution of EAWs and the risk of variable geometry in its implementation because of the wide margin of manoeuvre left to the competent national authorities. This article highlights those and other challenges and investigates whether there is a need for further EU action in the field. It defends the view that various EU interventions of a non-legislative nature are necessary but it calls also for a reflection on EU legislative actions, especially defining minimum standards in the field of detention conditions.

Experience of Mediation of the European Union in the Russian-Georgian war of 2008

The article is devoted to defining evaluation criteria and explaining the reasons for the effectiveness and ineffectiveness of European Union mediation in the 2008 Russian-Georgian war. The analysis of the effectiveness of EU intervention in conflicts as a mediator is almost unexplored in Ukraine: Ukrainian scientists consider EU peacekeeping in a broad sense, but does not specifically focus on mediation. This article is an attempt to scientifically assess the effectiveness of the EU as a mediator in the Russian-Georgian war on the basis of developed criteria. The work is written within the general framework of the conflict resolution paradigm, and elements of the constructivist paradigm are also used to explain the meta-conflict present in the conflict system - the difference in narratives of the conflicting parties, which reduced the possibility of successful mediation. The context and process of European mediation were revealed using the case study method. The historical method was used to determine the root causes of the conflict. Using the method of discourse analysis, the features of the conflict system were determined. The paper identifies theoretical approaches to assessing the effectiveness of intervention, describes the features of the conflict system of the Russian-Georgian war, describes the process of European Union intervention in the conflict. The effectiveness of mediation in two stages is analyzed - mediation in the "hot phase" of the conflict and mediation in the Geneva negotiations. The effectiveness at each stage was evaluated according to the criteria formed on the basis of the above theoretical approaches. Contextual (motivation of the parties, levers of influence of the mediator) and procedural (strategy of the mediator) independent variables were analyzed. It was concluded that the degree of effectiveness of the intervention was determined by the interaction of these factors at each stage, but not one of them. The approach used in this study can be applied to assessing the effectiveness of mediation by both the EU and any other actor in resolving post-Soviet conflicts, particularly in the case of the Russian-Ukrainian war, which remained outside the scope of the study.