This edited book investigates whether ─ and if so, to what extent ─ the European Union began to turn its recently uttered ambition of becoming a geopolitical Union into practice. It does so by bringing a range of scholars from various institutions and disciplines ─ among others, political science, European law, European studies ─ together, asking them whether in their specific field, they can observe a geopolitical turn in the European Union''s policy-making. The result of this intellectual endeavour can be found in this book; a book that makes a first attempt at empirically testing the Union''s ability to effectively respond to ever- and rapidly-changing conditions for conducting international politics in a rule-based system. The volume is divided into two separate, yet mutually informing, parts. Part I consists of a series of empirical chapters assessing the EU''s actorness vis-à-vis other regional powers, regional and international organisations. This is followed by several empirical snapshots looking into specific policy areas in Part II. As we combine the insights from both parts, we attempt to contribute to the debate on the changing nature of the European Union in challenging times. Our approach, then, is primarily an empirical one. And yet, building upon these conclusions, we are able to also draw conceptual conclusions about the EU''s increasing geopolitical nature, or the lack thereof. These conclusions make this a relevant read not only for academics, but also for practitioners of European law and European integration.
Marek Neuman is Assistant Professor in EU Foreign Policy and Jean Monnet Chair of European Politics and Governance at the Faculty of Arts of the University of Groningen, The Netherlands.
Ramses A. Wessel is Professor of European Law at the Faculty of Law of the University of Groningen, The Netherlands.
Thijs de Zee is a PhD Candidate at the Faculty Campus Fryslân of the University of Groningen, The Netherlands.
Chapter 3 is available open access under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License via link.springer.com.
