Overview

This book offers the first comprehensive analysis and comparison of all the EU High Representatives / Vice Presidents of the Commission (HRVPs) until 2024. The book explores how three incumbents with very different backgrounds, ways of working and personalities took up the challenge of formulating the EU’s answers to brewing international crises, regional instabilities, humanitarian disasters and, eventually, war. Applying role theory, the research provides deep insights into foreign policy leadership during a period when the EU needed to adapt to a rapidly changing international environment. Based on a large set of expert interviews, the book makes the case that the leadership and role performance of the HRVP matter and can have a positive impact on the EU’s international activities. As geopolitics stages a revival, future HRVPs need to engage powerful member states and key actors in Brussels to unleash the full potential of the EU’s economic, political and military weight.

Full Product Details

9783031746109

Table of Contents

Reviews

“The book makes an original contribution to the literature on EU foreign and security policy. …the book provides a thoughtful exploration of a pivotal institution within the EU machinery. This book is particularly well suited for scholars and practitioners of European studies, International Relations and foreign policy analysis. It will also resonate with policy-makers and diplomats invested in the EU’s evolving role as a global actor.” (Mahmoud Javadi, International Affairs, Vol. 101 (3), 2025)

Author Information

Niklas Helwig is Leading Researcher at the Finnish Institute of International Affairs. He is also an Associate Professor in International Relations at Tampere University, Finland. His research focuses on EU foreign and security policy, German foreign and security policy, as well as EU-US relations.

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