Abstract (eng)
Globalization has changed the diplomatic conduct in the 21st century on global, regional and national scale. European diplomacy has undergone similar transformation and, as a result, the European Union (EU) established its own diplomatic service – the European External Action Service (EEAS), with aim to increase Europe’s diplomatic influence. However, since its establishment, the new service has been facing profound challenges, including the reluctance of the Member States to accept the EEAS’ leadership role. This thesis aims to illustrate the changing global patterns of diplomacy in the 21st century and to provide an in-depth discussion of the EEAS’ role in the context of current European diplomacy. The thesis outlines the underlying causes for the EEAS’ establishment, examines the challenges and legal constraints to its efficient functioning and focuses on investigation of the service’s cooperation with the Member States’ diplomacies. The research was done based on a thorough examination of primary and secondary sources, namely EU legal documents as well as articles written by leading experts on diplomacy. The research confirmed the preliminary hypothesis that the current interplay of the EEAS and the Member States is challenged by multiple factors, such as the Member States’ reluctance to transfer their external representation competences to the EEAS, budgetary constraints and the lack of legal basis to justify the EEAS’ leadership. A crucial component of the research was to examine the added value of the EEAS to the national diplomatic services. As expected, the research concluded that the EEAS could have significant added political and economic value to the European diplomacy. Moreover, specific suggestions on how to utilize these benefits are examined in the thesis. The findings clearly show that the on-going diplomatic cooperation between the EEAS and the Member States is insufficient and further measures should be taken in order to achieve the most benefits the new service can offer, in order to improve the EU’s standing in the global diplomacy of the 21st century.