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UTENRIKS-Internasjonale forhold - utenriks- og sikkerhetspolitikk og norske interesser

The legitimacy of EU foreign and security policy in the age of global contestation (LEGOF)

Alternative title: Legitimitet i EUs utenriks- og sikkerhetspolitikk i en uoversiktlig verden (LEGOF)

Awarded: NOK 3.9 mill.

LEGOF has studied how the European Union, which is neither an international organization nor a state, can be an effective and predictable foreign policy actor in an increasingly unstable and unpredictable world. It is often claimed that the EU's ability to influence international political processes, and be an actor that is listened to, is limited because the Union does not have its own military. This argument is based on the assumption that access to material resources (military and economic) is a deciding factor as to whether or not an actor wealds global influence. LEGOF challenges this assumption. While material resources can be used to help ?force through? an actor?s policy goals, this strategy does not ensure long-term, foreign policy support. An effective foreign policy must also be perceived as legitimate. LEGOF examined the extent to which, as well as how, the EU acts to ensure such support (legitimacy) for its foreign and security policy. LEGOF argues that the EU faces a greater challenge than states do when it comes to establishing their legitimacy base. The challenge for the EU is twofold: the Union must create support for its policies internally - among the Member States - and externally - vis-à-vis third countries. The LEGOF project is made up of two groups: a core group of researchers at ARENA and an international network of experts in foreign policy analysis. The project's core group has presented its research at international conferences, to relevant user groups nationally and internationally, and in a number of articles in peer-reviewed journals. The project?s findings are also presented in a book, which will be published by Routledge in 2022, and in a series of policy briefs. A main finding from the research is that support for foreign and security policy within the EU has increased due to a combination of negotiations and arguments. In open processes where different options for action are discussed, representatives from Member States are forced to defend their positions in a way that is acceptable for others. This means that the EU's, decision-making processes, while tedious, can also contribute to ?civilize? politics. The assumption is that the inclination to defend national interests is hampered by the expectation that the norms and principles, enshrined in the EU?s treaties, will also govern foreign policy. A foreign policy focussing on the rights of the individual and on increased power for international institutions was in line with the norms in the international community after the end of the Cold War. Today, support for such ideas is weaker. In general, it can be said that the EU must navigate a world that is normatively unclear. LEGOF's analyses show that the legitimacy of the EU's external policy is being questioned. Countries in the global south perceive, rightly or wrongly, the EU's references to universal rights as a lack of recognition for differences in states' historical experiences and traditions. Parallelly, LEGOF has found a shift in the EU's approach. Concepts such as ?local ownership?, "resilience" and "principled pragmatism" should, to a greater extent, guide foreign policy. If this shift continues, it could lead to the EU's internal need to anchor policy in universalizable principles in order to reach agreement on a collision course with its external need for recognition of difference in international politics. In sum, the EU is facing difficult normative choices in an increasingly confusing and unstable world.

Prosjektet har bidratt med nye faglige innsikter innenfor flere forskningsfelt, men spesielt innenfor utenrikspolitisk analyser, EU studier og internasjonal politikk. Prosjektet har bidratt til å sette en ny forskningsagenda om legitimitet i utenrikspolitikken, og derigjennom utfordret etablerte forestillinger om materielle ressurser som avgjørende for utenrikspolitikkens resultater. Ved å trekke på innsikter fra politisk teori har prosjektet bidratt til å styrke forståelsen av normers innflytelse på internasjonal politikk. Prosjektet har også hatt samfunnsmessig betydning. Gjennom felles seminarer med medlemmer av embetsverket har prosjektet bidratt til økt kunnskap og økt debatt om betydningen av utviklingen av Europeisk utenriks- og sikkerhetspolitikk for norsk utenrikspolitikk. Prosjektets policy briefs, som er formidlet gjennom ARENAs nettsider og i sosiale medier (Twitter og Facebook), har nådd et bredere publikum og bidratt til en faglig fundert offentlig debatt.

LEGOF examines the viability of the EU's foreign and security policy in the context of enhanced uncertainty, risk and ambiguity in international affairs. It addresses the call by providing up to date analyses of the role and capabilities of the EU in the changing world order, including its ability to handle challenges to the east and south of its borders, and the impact of new initiatives such as PESCO. LEGOF involves a cross-national, as well as an international, group of researchers from several disciplines - political science, political theory, international relations, law, sociology and philosophy. LEGOF posits that there is need for a particular type of legitimacy for the EU to be a capable and also reliable actor. The requirement of physical capabilities to insert the EU's will in a changing world order, depends on the Union's ability to establish a legitimacy basis of its own that is also acceptable for others. The prevailing mood is of a need to shift from soft to hard power in the context of increased geopolitical competition. Yet the success of such a shift itself depends on protracted consensus-making processes between the Masters of the Treaties. Power is only power as long as there is agreement and as long as the member states stay together. LEGOF breaks new ground in research on EU foreign and security policy through its emphasis on legitimacy in the establishment of capability. Drawing on its conception of legitimacy it conducts four strands of empirical analyses, which address both the procedural and the substantive dimensions of EU foreign, security and defence policy. LEGOF’s theoretically informed research establishes a sound basis for developing policy relevant analyses. LEGOF has established a project structure that allows for engagement with stakeholders throughout the project period.

Funding scheme:

UTENRIKS-Internasjonale forhold - utenriks- og sikkerhetspolitikk og norske interesser