The WMD Non-proliferation Clause in EU Trade Agreements

Abstract

The EU has been using its trade power to exert influence in other areas by including non-trade issues (NTIs) in its trade agreements with third countries. One such NTI is the weapons of mass destruction (WMD) non-proliferation clause. We study how the WMD non-proliferation clause affected countries’ WMD non-proliferation behaviour. Our results demonstrate that the nonproliferation clause is effective in case of bilateral trade agreements, but not in case of regional trade agreements. The results demonstrate that the EU can use its trade power to exert influence in other areas, but that the extent of such power is limited. EU, WMD non-proliferation clause, NTIs, Trade Agreements, Conditionality