The European External Action Service

The violent eruption of the Libya crisis and the seemingly uncoordinated reaction of the international community highlighted once more that efficient crisis management needs to grasp a situation in all its complexity, before being able to act appropriately: The legitimacy of any intervention is crucial for its success, and therefore an international mandate, a coherent approach and a sensible combination of civilian and military means are indispensable. The European External Action Service was envisioned as the main tool to enable the EU to act in accordance with these international diplomatic requirements in a more unified and coherent manner. Cathleen Berger analyses its capacity to act to do so. She explores both intergovernmental and supranational elements and identifies the players involved as well as crucial points and critical developments, leading to a substantiated evaluation of the EEAS as an important corporate actor and the respective implications for the development of crisis management in times of conflict and crisis.