Jean Monnet Module on Agenda-Setting in the European Union – ASEU
The EU foreign policy agenda and the Mediterranean
Prof Roderick Pace (Jean Monnet Chair, University of Malta)
Description.
The external presence has been a recurrent concern for the European Union since the early stages of
the integration process. However, integration in foreign policies had a dramatic acceleration after
the end of the Cold War, with the coincidence of the unfreezing of a number of conflicts and the
parallel disengagement of the US as the main ‘European shelter’. These provided both dramatic
challenges and great opportunities for a strengthened international ‘actorness’ of the European
Union. What are the priorities of the EU in its foreign policy agenda? How does the EU address
external challenges and opportunities? What are the main policy venues for decision in foreign
policy matters? This lecture focuses on these questions, that it address with a special focus on the
area of the Mediterranean, particularly in the aftermath of the Arab Springs.