Normative Power Europe and the Power of the Local

Abstract

In this article, the unfolding events surrounding the publication of the EU Guidelines prohibiting the allocation of funds to Israeli entities in the Occupied Territories are used to offer three observations about the impact of 'the local' on 'Normative Power Europe' (NPE). First, the case study reveals the growing influence of the power of 'the European local' on the decision of whether or not to deploy normative power. Second, it underscores the fact that local power relations in the target country often determine the reaction to NPE, while the reaction often produces the visibility of the normative edicts and thus helps empower NPE. And third, NPE's visibility has an impact on the EU's self-identification, but not necessarily on the policies it criticizes. These observations underscore the importance of analyzing the various levels of 'the local' and their relation to NPE in order to understand the latter's political impact.

Uncertainty at the EU's borders: narratives of EU external relations in the revised European Neighbourhood Policy towards the southern borderlands

“…19 While this allowed the centre-right Israeli Government to save face vis-à-vis important nationalist electorates, these stipulations defuse and undermine the spirit of the guidelines. In fact, as Gordon and Pardo (2014) point out, their scope is seemingly irrelevant. During the period 1998-2013 a total of only four research projects that involved Israeli entities in the occupied territories benefited from EU funds amounting to a mere EUR 1.45 million.…”

“…During the period 1998-2013 a total of only four research projects that involved Israeli entities in the occupied territories benefited from EU funds amounting to a mere EUR 1.45 million. When compared to the EUR 636.9 million that the EU granted to finance 1584 Israeli participations in 1310 EU funded research projects during 2007-2013 (Gordon and Pardo 2014), it becomes obvious that the guidelines represent rather the characteristics of a showcase project destined to demonstrate that the EU is not shying away from flexing its European Security 393 muscles, whereas in fact, the political realities on the ground, namely the ongoing construction of Israeli settlements and thus continuous occupation, are not being challenged. Moreover, the guidelines in their original version were supposed to declare individual settlers ineligible for EU funding.…”

Normative Power Europe? The EU's Embrace of the Responsibility to Protect in a Transitional International Order

“…In turn, NPE is challenged by a changing international order and a global push back against liberal internationalism. Nevertheless, NPE continues to attract considerable attention as a concept, with scholars exploring its theoretical value as well as applying itoften criticallyto the EU's international engagement in various policy areas (Del Sarto 2016;Gordon and Pardo 2015;Hansen and Marsh 2015;Manners 2015;Veebel and Markus, 2018).…”

The Role of Law in EU Foreign Policy‐making: Legal Integrity, Legal Spillover, and the EU Policy of Differentiation towards Israel

“…The case that raised the greatest political and public attention was EU–Israeli co‐operation on research and development. In the run‐up to the EU's research programme Horizon 2020, MEPs repeatedly pointed to deficiencies in the implementation of previous EU–Israeli research co‐operation (see Gordon and Pardo, , p. 4). Among other things, the Commission had to admit publicly that the Israeli cosmetics company ‘Ahava’ had been eligible for EU research funding though it carried out research activities in Israeli settlements.…”