In the post-9/11 world, the European Union
has been trying to define its international presence in a way which corresponds
to its economic power and enlarged membership. In an effort to assert its
identity on the international scene, the EU has developed a very wide range of
economic relations with third countries and international organizations. It has
also developed a Common Foreign and Security Policy in the context of which it
is gradually shaping its Security and Defense Policy. These policies are carried
out on the basis of distinct, albeit interrelated, sets of legal rules. This
book provides a comprehensive and systematic analysis of these economic,
political, and security aspects of the relations of the European Union with the
rest of the world. It examines their genesis, development, and interactions, and
places them in the specific context of the establishment of the internal market
and the broader context of the increasingly interdependent international
economic and geopolitical environment. Issues covered include the coexistence of
Community and national competence in external relations; the approach of the
Court of Justice to international law; the negotiation, conclusion, and
implementation of international agreements; the relationship between EC and WTO
law; and the development of the political and security policies of the
Union.
