The purpose of this course is to situate the European Union (EU) in the context of global politics, in order to understand both the role the EU plays across a range of thematic and geographical areas of international politics, and the impact that external developments have on Europe.

Upon completion of the course, students will have: A thorough knowledge of the EU institutions and decision-making procedures in the area of foreign policy An awareness of the opportunities and limitations for EU external action, in particular with regard to the inter-relationship between economic, security and normative considerations A good knowledge of the variety of relations the EU maintains with the major powers and key regional organisations across the globe An understanding of the main trends in global politics and the impact that these have on the EU A capacity to identify the main driving forces in EU external relations and to critically examine the challenges and opportunities confronting the EU in an emerging multipolar world

The course introduces students to the history and institutions of EU foreign policy making, and then examines in more detail Europe’s role in key area of global governance (security, trace, climate action, migration) as well as its relations with major powers and key regions around the world.

S. Keukeleire and T.Delreux, The Foreign Policy of the European Union (Palgrave, 2014) C. Hill, M. Smith, and S. Vanhoonacker (eds), International Relations and the European Union (OUP, 2017)

The course combines a number of educational formats, specifically lectures, student debates and classroom discussion. The emphasis is on interactive and problem-based learning. Sessions will feature lectures by the instructor (ca.45mins) which will present key developments in the field and in the literature, and raise questions and problems for subsequent discussion. The remainder of the session will then be devoted to classroom discussion addressing these questions, and any other points that students may want to raise. There will also be sessions during which groups of students – having worked together to research the particular issue – will debate key questions and raise points for subsequent classroom discussion.

The course will be assessed through a combination of continuous assessment of student participation and a final exam.

Min 29/30