| Review of: | EU Foreign and Interior Policies: Cross-Pillar Politics and the Social Constructions of Sovereignty by S. Stetter |
|---|---|
| Reviewed By: | Thierry Balzacq |
| Reviewed in: | Journal of Common Market Studies |
| Date accepted online: | 02/11/2007 |
| Published in print: | Volume 45, Issue 03, Pages 745-769 |
Book Reviews
In scientific terms, but also by policy standards, justice and home affairs (JHA) and the common foreign and security policy (CFSP) have become the most dynamic fields of EU policies. The problem, according to Stephan Stetter, is that the formal endurance of the pillar design by which these policies are typically characterized neglects the mechanisms of integration that substantially (re)configure foreign and interior policies. Indeed, traditionally, the literature on foreign and interior policies is premised around the claim that the processes and weaknesses of these fields result from either supranational or intergovernmental logics. On the face of it, the book shows that students of EU politics who adopt this posture often hold that no instructive comparison could be drawn on the dynamics of integration in EU foreign and interior policies. To circumvent these problems, the book pursues three objectives. First, detect cross-pillar intersections which underpin developments in both JHA and CFSP. Second, on a more holistic level, assess the impact of cross-pillarization on the political system of the EU. The analytical setting is then brought to bear on two powerful case studies: the European Mediterranean Partnership and migration policies, from Maastricht to Nice.
What the book does extremely well is to challenge the pillar approach to EU foreign and interior policies by tracing the 'functional unity' that brings both policies together. The basic idea here is that, in many ways, despite obvious technical and legal differences, there are functional, substantive and institutional overlaps between the two policy areas. Thus, Stetter argues, addressing the functional unity across the pillars offers a unique opportunity to grasp the emergence of what he calls a 'distinct sovereignty dimension of the EU' (p. 15). It is precisely the constitutive mechanisms of this sovereignty that enables Stetter to bring to light, beyond the seemingly institutional fragmentations, the construction of the EU as a 'Self' which is fundamentally distinct from 'Others'. The inside/outside distinction thus forms the backbone of the EU's internal and external sovereignty dimension. Further, the construction of an EU sovereignty dimension coincides, by accident or by design, with the steady increase in the dominance of executive actors - i.e. the Commission, the Council, and the Council Secretariat. Moreover, in stark contrast to what is usually held, the book shows that the delegation of extra-powers to supranational executive powers is severely constrained by subtle mechanisms of control established by Member States on the Treaty level. This explains, in part, the meagre outcomes of EU actions in the Palestine peace process, for instance. In this light, what matters in the case studies is not so much the results day-to-day policy-making achieves as its impact on the functional structure of the EU.
One of the weaknesses of the monograph rests with the underdevelopment of what is arguably the theoretical framework which gives meaning to the case studies. Indeed, given the centrality of the inside/outside distinction, readers will expect more on this; but, I am afraid, they will be disappointed. I think there is more to that distinction than cross-pillarization might explain. The architecture of the European Neighbourhood Policies, for example, teaches us that the inside/outside distinction is a variable geometry scheme that should be handled with care. In this context, the inside/outside distinction varies both in its purposes and in its mode of governance, depending on where one crosses the external limits of the EU. The immediate implications are, first, that the functional unity of the EU foreign and interior policies cannot gravitate around one unique conceptual couple; and, second, that this conceptual couple leads to two questions at least, identity and borders. The former is underspecified and the latter is glossed-over.
In sum, however, the book remains theoretically sound and empirically strong. By focusing on cross-pillarization, Stetter adds texture to the literature on EU integration theory. Further, by offering an innovative reading of the EU sovereignty dimension, the book clarifies certain important aspects of the emergence of EU internal 'identity'. Finally, by exploring the mechanisms of control which limit the delegation of authority to supranational actors, Stetter is able to excavate the deep meaning of the communitarization of EU policies. This is where, I believe, the book could spark a debate.