| ID | 146997 |
| Title Proper | Power of informality |
| Other Title Information | European Union’s engagement with non-state actors in common security and defence policy |
| Language | ENG |
| Author | Shapovalova, Natalia |
| Summary / Abstract (Note) | This article examines the little explored issue of non-state actor (NSA) participation in the European Union’s (EU) Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP). Despite the fact that NGOs and civil society are shielded from formal access to CSDP, EU staff in both Brussels and the missions engage with them informally. Drawing on interviews with policy-makers and NSA representatives, the article analyses the practices of the EU in its engagement with NSAs, focusing on civilian missions in Georgia and Palestine. It shows that such engagement is more intense during implementation at the level of CSDP missions rather than during policy-making in Brussels. It argues that a combination of rational choice-based (functional needs of policy-makers and intensity of NSA advocacy) and constructivist (organisational and individual cultures) explanations helps us better understand why CSDP structures open up to NSAs. The article contributes to the nascent academic and policy debate on EU–civil society cooperation in CSDP and, more broadly, to the studies of informal governance in the EU and NSA participation in international organisations. |
| `In' analytical Note | European Security Vol. 25, No.3; Sep 2016: p.326-345 |
| Journal Source | European Security Vol: 25 No 3 |
| Key Words | Palestine ; European Union ; Georgia ; Governance ; Non-State Actors ; Common Security and Defence Policy |