The Twelve’s Dialogue with Third Countries — Progress Towards a Communauté d’ action?

Abstract

In the past the reactive and ‘declaratory’ nature of European Political Cooperation (EPC) has often been blamed for EPC’s low status in international politics. More recently, concern has been expressed from within the European Community (EC), articulated most clearly by President Delors, that the Twelve’s joint endeavour towards a ‘European foreign policy’ may fail to keep pace with the dynamics of the EC’s Internal Market programme. In contrast, others including the EPC presidencies, have argued that European governments have increased their capacity to respond to unforeseen international challenges and to manage and influence world politics. As always, the truth is to be located somewhere between these two diametric poles, and assessment will vary according to both the observer’s expectations and the EPC agenda.