Europe as a Power House

Europe as a Global Actor

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Introduction

Nations seek to achieve greater feats or even reach higher goals in their existience and history. The rise and fall of most nations is one example that can be attributed to this clamour for greatness and power. World's greatest and most significant events like the scramble and partition of Africa, the World Wars, sending of the first man to the moon and scientific discoveries were all inspired by the desire of nations seeking to outdo others and take the glory. The European Union as a regional bloc has for years been trying to take back the glory they once had before the United States became the global powerhouse.

According to Zielonka (2008), the EU has been making efforts to use it's position and influence to extend it's power to other parts of the world. These efforts have been through economic tools, political strategies and even formal annexations. According to Böröcz , Kovács, Mauro, Sher, Dancsi, & Kabachnik (2001), the Union seems to be working out on new methodologies that can influence international affairs and policies in their favour, however this doesn't seem to bear enough fruits because other nations and regional blocs have their needs and goals too. European Union's tactics seem to be working in a few instances but it is not clear on whether these tactics will work in a global perspective, and therefore it is the high time that the region either dropped the agenda of becoming a super power or changed the tactics (Zielonka, 2008).

The EU and International Affairs

The EU as an international actor, is seen to act in the best interests of the strong nations and based on this approach, some weak countries do not seem to be important (Böröcz et al., 2001). The Union has influence on so many international bodies like the World Trade Organization and this has pushed economic powerhouses like the USA being called to review their policies to match EU standards. Several Non Governmental Organizations (NGOs) like the Alliance for Climate Change tend to exert pressure and influence favouring the European Union. Most "failed states" like Kosovo and Afghanistan are unable to control their resources and even political power because of the influence of the Union and other strong agencies (Zielonka, 2008, Böröcz et al., 2001).

The case is however different for other countries like Singapore and Taiwan which despite not being endowed with natural resources are able to invest in research, smart technologies and marketing. These states usually referred to as "virtual states" are able to stamp their authority and influence in a global level against the expectations of the EU.

Nations like the USA, through their strong cultures, robust economies and strong militaries defy the European Union giants in all ways. In most cases these countries might not be able to control international policies or laws, but they are in a position to either defy, bargain or seek explanations which would in turn be bad for the EU. However, the United States is able to interfere with affairs of the international community, and at the same time it has the powers to apply some of it's laws outside it's territories without the EU questioning (Zielonka, 2008). In the context of the European Union making efforts to become a global actor, United States is seen as a thorn in their flesh and this is yet another reason why the EU cannot become a global empire.

EU's Regional and Global Agenda

The European Union imperialist pattern is mostly felt at the region's weak nations in the Eastern and Central parts of the continent. The EU has been doing this by leveraging on the stability of other countries in Western Europe, through economic and political tactics (Zielonka, 2008). The countries admission to the Union after the Cold War did not give them power to make decisions or even influence change on existing policy frameworks. There is seen to exist a huge power discrepancy between those states and the EU. The Union has been controlling and monitoring how such states have been making changes meant to comply with the EU laws and regulations (Böröcz et al., 2001).

The Euro is the main currency in the Union and it's adoption in a way weakened the economies of these countries. Most of these countries depend on hand outs from the European Union, with most fiscal interventions being done by the EU. States like Kosovo and Bosnia & Herzegovina are semi-protectorates of the Union, with a majority of institutions being run by the United Nations through the EU (Böröcz et al., 2001).

Weak neighbours like Jordan and Lebanon in the regions sorrounding the EU are helped to stabilize based on conditions that they will comply with the Union's rules and regulations. The European Union tries to dominate in these countries with principles of good governance, democracy and economic growth, however this has only benefited the Union (Böröcz et al., 2001). The instability of these states is more of a gain to the EU because they are able to control movements of people and goods and benefit from oil reserves from the oil rich neighbours (Zielonka, 2008). The involvement of the European Union in a country's affairs may take different shapes and forms all depending on what they seek to gain from providing "assistance". Most neighbouring weak states are promised "further integration and liberalization" into the EU as long as they comply with the conditions set by the European Union. According to Zielonka (2008), a good example is the Euro-Mediterranean Agreement with Tunisia which provides the country to change it's legislation to become uniform with that of the European Union. However this is meant look good for Tunisia but in reality, it is only meant to give the European Union the power to control their strategic amenities.

Regional integration seems to be a success for the EU however global pressure however seem to be affecting this and key players like the UK are keen to exit the Union because it is not good on them as a nation (Zielonka, 2008). The fact that the world is diverse, makes it difficult for one single power or union to confine policies. Despite global union being difficult to attain, the EU has had "gains" in their imperialism goals in some parts of the world, it is however not clear whether they can sustain this and even influence more states. As it currently stands, the EU can only use trade as a tool to "colonize" the rest of the world because it has an advantage over other players (Böröcz et al., 2001). However, it is very important to acknowledge that other actors like China, South East Asia and Latin America are working with the United States to undo EU's gains across the world.

Conclusion

The battle on who controls the world and influences global policy is becoming sophisticated on a daily basis. Nations across different continents are getting into new pacts, agreements, partnerships and deals to work together, enhance their capabilities, increase competition, improve their bargaining powers, control factors of production and become working partners and friends. Nations in South Asia, Latin America and Africa are choosing to approach new states outside the EU as their trade partners denying the Union the opportunity and ability to influence their policies. Assuming the European Union decided to work alone to try and dominate the rest of the world (the Americas, Asia, Antarctica and Africa), this would not be possible because the external world has more wealth, bargaining power, and resources as compared to the EU. The dream of the European Union to becoming the global empire is thus still far from being possible and would require repositioning, further strategizing and a new approach that is relevant for the 21st century and beyond.

References

Böröcz , J., Kovács, M., Mauro, E. D., Sher, A., Dancsi, K., & Kabachnik, P. (2001). Empire's New Clothes: Unveiling EU-Enlargement. Central Europe Review e-books.

Zielonka, J. (2008). Europe as a global actor: empire by example?. International affairs, 84(3), 471-484.

Europe as a Global Actor Outline

Thesis Statement: European Union's tactics seem to be working in a few instances but it is not clear on whether these tactics will work in a global perspective, and therefore it is the high time that the region either dropped the agenda of becoming a super power or changed the tactics.

I. Introduction

II. The EU and International Affairs

III. EU's Regional and Global Agenda

IV. Conclusion