Representation In EU Research Articles

Diplomatic Representation and Online/Offline Interactions: EU Coordination and Digital Sociability

Abstract European Union (EU) diplomatic representation in third countries is performed by both the Member States and by the EU Delegation. This hybrid system of representation functions through EU coordination. As social media have become important channels of state representation, coordination also takes place in the domain of digital diplomacy. This article analyzes how the EU Member State embassies and the EU Delegation coordinate EU representation through online and offline interactions. It investigates the practices of coordination and maps routines of digital sociability. The United States’ capital Washington, DC provides a context of both strong bilateral relations and a history of shared EU interests. The study draws on observations on Twitter (later renamed X) between 2019 and 2021 and reflections from diplomats who engage in the coordination of EU representation, collected through an online survey and interviews. By examining the reciprocity between online and offline interactions, the study illuminates how relationships are cultivated, a sense of collective belonging is fostered, and social order is negotiated. The findings enhance our understanding of how digital diplomacy is deeply embedded within diplomatic contexts and their distinctive practices. They contribute to advancing knowledge about the interplay of digital diplomacy, multilateral representation, and the dynamics that shape diplomatic engagements.

Is Europe raising its voice? EU representation at the UN prior to and post-Lisbon

The ‘High Representative’ speaks on behalf of the European Union in international organizations since 2010. The motivation for this reform has been to strengthen the European Union's foreign policy representation. It can be expected that this empowerment of the High Representative has affected the content of official European Union speeches held at the United Nations. Did the reform lead to a more coherent and cohesive representation of European Union foreign policy at the United Nations? To answer this question, I analyze the content of all speeches held on behalf of the European Union in the United Nations General Assembly between 1993 and 2021. I find that European Union foreign policy priorities are more coherently and cohesively represented since the Lisbon reforms took effect. I argue that the empowerment of the ‘High Representatives’ and their diplomats caused this effect. Today, European Union representatives are less likely to follow global trends but set their own thematic priorities by focusing on the areas of disarmament, sustainable development, and international law.

EU Representations in Portuguese Media and Populism: Embodying Political Antipodes?

<div><span>Mass media mediate different publics, thus being crucial in constructing political reality. By selecting which topics are covered (agenda), which voices are heard, or how social and political issues/actors/dynamics are represented (priming and framing), mass media impacts how political conversations and processes unfold. Acknowledging the increasing mediatisation of politics, this article zooms into media texts of the Portuguese media during a complex political period that included national elections to explore how populism as a term, label, or topic was used and/or co-opted to create and negotiate political EU representations. Building on a historical perspective and using critical thematic analysis, this article argues that populism was used in the media and by the media as a discursive mechanism of political positionality and/or delegitimisation or criticism of political actors, agendas, or moves, thus making populism and the EU co-constitutively used as embodying political antipodes and making the EU work as a discursive buffer concerning populism in the country. </span></div>

Individual and collective representation: the organisational form of higher education lobbying in the European Union

ABSTRACT Recent scholarly work on higher education institutions (HEIs) within an EU context has focused on how universities and their core activities have been affected by EU education policy. The organisation of HEIs in order to shape European decision-making on higher education, mainly through their presence in Brussels, has received much less attention. This article therefore focuses on how HEIs organise their EU representation and explains their choice for a specific organisational form, distinguishing between individual (i.e. a Brussels office), collective (i.e. via an association) and mixed representation (the combination of both a Brussels office and membership of an association). After systematically mapping the organisational form of 250 HEIs, we apply a mixed methods design to test our hypotheses derived from previous research on interest representation and lobbying. Our findings illustrate that the distance from Brussels is a key factor in the decision to open a Brussels office or join an association, whereas financial resources appear imperative for combining both forms of representation. Furthermore, we identify additional underlying motives for choosing a particular mode of representation, in particular the importance of information exchange, visibility and networking.

National Myth in UK–EU Representations by British Conservative Prime Ministers from Churchill to Johnson

Britain’s withdrawal of its EU membership has a number of political and economic implications for UK–EU relations. In seeking to understand the 2016 EU referendum outcome, it is insightful to study the historical development of discourses representing the UK–EU relationship. Doing so reveals the trends of British exceptionalism and British Euroscepticism as integral to these discourses. Applying a diachronic approach, this paper examines ten speeches by nine Conservative Prime Ministers (PMs) held at the annual Conservative Party Conferences from 1945 to 2020. The speeches include, among others, those by Winston Churchill, Margaret Thatcher, David Cameron and Boris Johnson. The qualitative analysis traces the discursive strategies employed by PMs in their construction of the Conservative narrative of national myth, focusing especially on the issues of British national identity in relation to Europe. Methods of Discourse Historical Analysis (DHA) and Critical Metaphor Analysis (CMA) are applied in order to identify strategies employed by PMs as tools of persuasion for the purpose of consolidating political power and promoting their policies. This study has identified three major interrelated strategies—myth, ally and enemy creation—which are used to narrate the story of Britain’s relationship with Europe as a potential member of the Union, as a member, and up to its efforts to leave the EU.

The persistent dilemma of supranational representation. Framing the weakness of the European Parliament’s representative function in light of the rise of Euroscepticism

ABSTRACT The different crises affecting the EU since 2008 have triggered the politicization of European integration. In this regard, it is of primary importance to understand how the EU representation model works, and what have been the major shortcomings of this function at the supranational level. The article will focus on the role and functioning of the European Parliament (EP), which in this moment in history should arguably be at the centre of the political debate over the EU and its governance. Instead, the EP’s representative function has proven to be rather weak also in this mutating context. Using the theoretical insights of the representative claim theory declined according to the peculiarity of the multilevel governance system, the present article offers a theoretical framework with which to interpret the weaknesses and the dilemma of supranational representation and the role of the EP in this fragile context. Furthermore, the article will suggest that the rise of Euroscepticism can be seen as an unavoidable outcome of the shortcomings of the EU’s representative system.

Does Politicization Matter for EU Representation? A Comparison of Four European Parliament Elections*

AbstractWhat is the effect of politicization on EU representation? We empirically test two competing views through a focus on party–voter congruence, namely whether parties share the policy preferences of their voters. The first perspective expects that the process of politicization – either through party or media contestation – would improve party–voter agreement. The second perspective argues that politicization has not improved the supply of partisan debate with parties still not offering satisfactory options to voters who are primarily driven by protest‐based considerations; and as such does not expect an effect. We analyse congruence on the left–right and pro–anti‐EU dimensions, capturing questions related to EU policy and polity, respectively. Our examination of four European Parliament elections (1999–2014) and 341 parties across 53 electoral contexts points to the limited effect of politicization upon representation. Our findings have significant implications for the study of EU politicization and representation and open up avenues for future research.

Analysis of EU Membership in the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization (NAFO) as a Specific Model for EU Relations with International Intergovernmental Organizations

The article falls into the complicated and only partially analysed issues related to the essence of relations between international intergovernmental organizations. Against a background of the typology taking into account the scope and nature of EU representation in international intergovernmental organizations, it addresses the most important issues related to the essence of relations between the EC/EU and NAFO. Therefore, it discusses such matters as: the evolution of NAFO in the years 1979–2017, the nature of EU membership in NAFO, matters related to the representation and implementation of EC/EU interests on NAFO forum, as well as the system of internal coordination of EU activities in connection with its membership in this organization.

The direction of the d-vector in a nematic triplet superconductor

We investigate the states of triplet pairing in a candidate nematic superconductor versus typical material parameters, using the mean field theory for two- and three-dimensional tight-binding models with local triplet pairing in the Eu representation of the D3d, the point group of the system. In the two-dimensional model, the system favors the fully gapped chiral state for weaker warping or lower filling level, while a nodal and nematic state is favorable for stronger warping or higher filling, with the d-vector aligned along the principle axis. In the presence of lattice distortion, relative elongation along one of the principle axes, , tends to rotate the nematic d-vector orthogonal to , resulting in the nematic state at sufficient elongation. Three-dimensionality is seen to suppress the chiral state in favor of the nematic ones. Our results may explain the variety in the probed direction of the d-vector in existing experiments.

The Global Compact for Migration: Lessons for the Unity of EU Representation

Abstract In December 2018, the Global Compact for Migration was first adopted at the Marrakesh intergovernmental conference to be later endorsed as an UN General Assembly Resolution in New York. From an EU perspective, what started out as a common project to manage migration globally, not to say externally, became a fiasco for the unity of EU representation on the international scene. Unlike the negotiations of international agreements which are framed by the procedure set out in Article 218 TFEU, the negotiations of international soft law do not benefit from a clear legal framework. The Court of Justice has given some indications on the procedural and institutional aspects relevant for the negotiations of international soft law instruments in the Council v. Commission (C-660/13) case but many uncertainties remain. The purpose of this article is to draw lessons from the negotiation process of the Global Compact for the unity of EU representation.

Turning EU into me and you: The politicization of EU representations in Macedonia

Turning EU into me and you: The politicization of EU representations in Macedonia

Representation in multilateral democracy: How to represent individuals in the EU while guaranteeing the mutual recognition of peoples

AbstractThe democratic criteria for representation in the European Union are complex since its representation involves several delegation mechanisms and institutions. This paper develops institutional design principles for the representation of peoples and individuals and suggests reform options of the European Union on the basis of the theory of multilateral democracy. In particular, it addresses how the equality of individuals can be realised in EU representation while guaranteeing the mutual recognition of peoples. Unlike strict intergovernmental institutions, the EU requires an additional and independent legislative chamber in which individuals are directly represented. However, strict equality of individuals cannot be the guiding principle for this chamber. In order to avoid the overruling of peoples through supranational majorities, it is necessary to bind the chamber's composition by a principle of degressive proportionality. The representation of peoples, on the other hand, needs to be connected to their domestic democratic institutions.

The EU's Representation at the UNESCO and the 2005 Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions

The 60th anniversary of the Rome Treaties is an occasion to reflect on the advancement of the integration process. However, the EU’s role in international organizations does not mirror this level of internal integration. The EU has been addressing this imbalance in several EU documents and made the concept of “‘effective multilateralism’ a central element of its external action”, also enshrined in Article 21(1) TEU. At the heart of the realization of this concept was the participation of the EU in international fora, particularly the UN system. While a 2003 Commission’s communication envisioned an EU membership of UN bodies, the 2012 Barroso-Ashton Strategy was already more cautious and the 2016 Global Strategy even more, since it deals with the issue simply in one sentence. Nevertheless achieving an effective representation of the EU in international institutions is in the interest of the EU and remains a significant political priority. This paper analyses the interesting case of the position of the EU within the UNESCO. It outlines in a first step the EU’s internal competences in cultural matters and briefly introduces the UNESCO (II.). In a second step, the EU’s influence within the UNESCO is analyzed based on its role as an observer and its participation in negotiations for the 2005 Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions (III.), in order to lastly demonstrate how this kind of participation could serve as a model for a general strategy in dealing with external representation of the EU in international organizations.

The United Nations and the European Union: Partners in Multilateralism

In recent years, cooperation between the UN and the EU has grown exponentially. In this contribution I consider the motivations of the EU’s choice for the UN and the institutional complexities involved in the UN-EU relationship, both internally in the EU in order to obtain a better coordination among its 27 Member States, and externally, concerning the status of the EU within the UN system. After a brief overview of EU-UN cooperation in the areas of human development and security, I point to the uncertainties which both organizations face in their current reform processes, in particular the as of yet unresolved fate of the EU’s constitutional treaty, which contains provisions that could lead to a more unified EU representation in the UN.

Consolidation of the EU Representation at the IMF

Following the Five Presidents’ Report in October 2015, the EuropeanCommission set up the objective to move to a single euro-area chair at theIMF. The article focuses on assessing the effectiveness of this objective. Inthis context it assesses the IMF governance and the current development ofthe coordinaton of the EU Member States. Then the article carries out avoting power analysis of the euro-area constituency in several alternativescenarios. The article concludes that a more effective option would be tospread the euro-area member states into several constituencies rather thankeeping them all in one constituency.

THE TRANSFORMING STRUCTURE OF THE EU AND ESTONIAN POLITICS: SOME ASPECTS OF THE FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION AT EUROPEAN LEVEL

1. Introduction Demonstrating the importance of parties operating at European level mainly through their functions of shaping the landscape of Europe by organizing elections and reflecting the landscape of pluralist Europe, the article opens scientific and normative concepts of political and political party operating at European distinguishing Europarties from foundation at European level. The author in parallel explains political-historical background of Europe and Estonia, views parties operating at European level comparatively to parties of a EU member state, Estonia, and representation in the European Parliament, gives an overview of Estonia's representation in Europarties, and tries to connect the analysis with attempts to coordinate European politics. The importance of the research underlying this article lies in contextualising the relevant normative developments with explanations of the nature of politics and representation in Europe on historical background, of transformation of Estonian politics on the European landscape from communist one-party system toward plurality, and of the inner trend toward greater cooperation in the framework of discursive plurality or even features of duopolism in competition that may sometimes refer to opposition as known from the Cold War era that may very generally be understood as the East-West opposition. (1) Political competition and opposition are different phenomena--while one can see continuity in party competition, one may see discontinuity in opposition. Continuity and discontinuity here could be understood similarly to their meanings in the history of human rights, where continuity marks the more permanent values, while discontinuity marks politicization of human rights. Being a lawyer with human rights research background, I could also explain as follows: discontinuity refers to the nature of human rights--the existence of mechanisms is required for their validation and implementation, politicians have used and use human rights for achieving aims, while continuity refers to emanation of human rights from something more continuous than pure processes, being connected with human nature and inner moral rules of societal-political co-existing. Concerning the research methods, I have tried to apply scientific and normative concepts and understandings of party toward parties at European level, in order to understand how the features that are characteristic to parties show with the parties at European level. This article aims at offering a structural analysis of transformation of parties in Europe rather than at content analysis of ideologies. The author has used several internet sources because not all of the manifestos and other documents of all the Europarties have been published on paper. The use of internet sources seems also justified in the rapidly developing information society, where it is difficult for traditional publications to adequately reflect all of the most recent developments. The article focuses on the registered parties at European level, whereas one should also be aware of the existence of other movements and groups as a source of direct legitimacy, the latter do not constitute an object of this research. The analysis of manifestos and other documents at European level allowed the following contextualizing findings: the European People's Party (EPP) determines itself as representing centre-right and the idea of federal Europe; the Party of European Socialists (PES) determines itself as a left-wing party, bringing together in the EU the socialist, social-democrat and labour parties; the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats in Europe (ALDE) supports liberal democrat values; the Alliance of European Conservatives and Reformists (AECR) determines itself as a conservative, non-federalist entity; the Party of the European Left (EL) claims to represent non-socialist left-wing; the European Democratic Party (EDP) determines itself as a transnational movement combining federalist and social aspiration; the European Alliance for Freedom (EAF) does not define itself on the left-right scale, allowing members with wide spectrum, but at the same time looking at the content of its activities, it opposes centralized, supranational control; the Alliance of European National Movements (AEMN) determines itself as a Christian confederalist party; the European Christian Political Movement (ECPM) determines itself as a Christian-democratic party, representing Christian socialists, embracing European Christian-democratic and Christian-social parties, NGOs and think tanks; the EU Democrats (EUD) does not take a position on left-right policy issues, although it considers itself a pan-European EU-critical alliance; etc. …

The Currency of Europe? Representing Unified Europe as Film in the Age of the Euro

This paper addresses attempts to invent a representational form for Europe in the early 2000s. This was a key period of European Union expansion during which the Euro was introduced and European markets became more closely integrated. Yet in the age of the Euro, the question emerged with renewed vigor as to how to construct an affective identity for a group of states united through economic channels. This period of euphoric growth thus also proved to be a crucial moment of self-visualization. A commensurate official EU visual rhetoric developed that predictably celebrated the apparent collapse of borders and an increasingly unfettered flow of goods, people, and money. Independently produced representations of Europe made at this time, however, painted a more nuanced and conflicted picture of the expanding EU. This paper examines two wildly different films made in the year the Euro launched—the French comedy L’Auberge Espagnole and the socio-critical, Swedish feature Lilya 4-ever—that presented alternative narratives of contemporary “Europe”. A close reading of the films, juxtaposed with an analysis of the visual language of official EU representation, demonstrates that the primary concern of these new “European” narratives lay in finding a visual means of exploring how human bodies were to be integrated culturally and politically when they were conceived of and defined in economic terms. The films, I therefore argue, thus make the tensions between political and economic bodies that trouble contemporary Europe (e.g. the refugee, Grexit and Brexit crises) visible avant la lettre. I suggest that these narratives stage Europe as a border spectacle, in which borders are understood not simply as geographic entities, but also as the contested limits between political and economic authorities.

Far, Yet Close Enough?: Dynamics of the EU Representations in East Asian Media

Far, Yet Close Enough?: Dynamics of the EU Representations in East Asian Media

Accountability, legitimacy and representation in the EU

accountability, legitimacy and representation in the EU

RE-CONCEPTUALIZING JOINT CONSULTATIVE COMMITTEES IN PUBLIC HIGHER EDUCATION SECTORS IN MALAYSIA

Employee Participation (EP) enhances the quality of decision-making by broadening inputs, promotes commitment to the outcomes, improved motivation, co-operation and communication in the workplace. EP also may reduce workloads of supervisors, encourage skill development in the workforce and can contribute to improved employee relations. There are two forms of EP; direct and indirect. Joint Consultative Committee (JCC) is the most preferred indirect mechanism of workers representation in the UK and other English spoken country such as Australia, New Zealand and the US (Heller, et al. 1998; Parasuraman and Jones, 2006). In the developed countries, the Work Council, a similar structure as JCC can be found in Western Europe (the Netherlands) is the most effective workers representation in EU following the EU Directive 2002 for Information and Consultation (ICE) (Markey, 2010; Goodijk, 2010; Arrigo and Casale, 2010). The ICE has been extended to the UK which has boosted the interest on JCC (Kougiannou, 2013). However, the JCC system and practices in public higher education sector in Malaysia remained to be unknown. This paper discusses on the system and practices of JCC in a public higher education sector in Malaysia. The authors focused on three aspects: what, why and how JCC formation in the public higher education sector, their limitation, evaluation and improvement. The research findings indicate that JCC in public higher education sector was ineffective and re-conceptualizing of the JCC Model is required urgently in order for JCC to be relevant and effective. Therefore, certain modification to the JCC Model is essential to suit the public higher education sector environment in Malaysia. Keywords : Employee Participation, Joint Consultative Committee, Indirect Mechanism, Public Higher Education.