Informal groupings in EU foreign policy : a sustainable arrangement?

Abstract

In the last decade, the EU’s foreign policy practices have grown increasingly complex. The Lisbon Treaty sought to further centralise member states’ foreign policies at the EU level, particularly through the new High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice President of the European Commission, as well as through the establishment of the European External Action Service. And yet, on several occasions informal groups of member states steered EU foreign policy post-Lisbon. These informal dynamics of cooperation among EU member states reflect the extent of fragmentation in EU foreign policy governance despite the centralisation envisaged by the Lisbon Treaty. To contribute to the understanding of such dynamics, this policy analysis offers an overview of the types, functioning and implications of informal groupings in EU foreign policy post-Lisbon. Since most of the multiple crises the EU faced in the post-Lisbon era occurred – or are intimately interlinked to – Europe’s eastern and southern neighbourhood, the overview was conducted with special consideration to these regional settings. The phenomenon of informal and temporary groupings is a response to the need for efficiency in the face of geopolitical complexities. However, given the scant degree of accountability and temporary nature of these groupings, it is not a sustainable mode of governance for an EU that aims to be a more meaningful actor.