Pax Bruxellana?: Multilateralism and EU Global Power and Influence

Pax Bruxellana? focuses on the European Union’s engagement in international relations by examining its role in processes of international governance through the promotion of the rule of law, institutionalization, and the development of international norms and values.

The EU is a significant presence in international relations because of the size of its economy, the importance of the euro as an international currency and its role as a pre–eminent provider of foreign aid. The EU also seeks to advance its interests, values, and norms in global politics through its engagement with third parties and through processes of governance via multilateral institutions. A more recent development is the role of the EU and its member states as an active provider of soft security and as an aspirant to provide hard security. Pax Bruxellana? considers the objectives that the EU is pursuing in 21st–century global politics at a time of shifting power balances, when many are questioning its future.