EU Delegations in EU Foreign Policy' is the first in-depth study of the newly established EU embassies in the post-Lisbon period. By systematically investigating the level of diplomatic centralization around the world, it gives novel insights into how these new players give shape to their role and how differences in the level of integration can be explained. This perceptive analysis is indispensable reading for anyone interested in the emerging diplomatic system of the European Union. - Sophie Vanhoonacker, Chair in Administrative Governance, Maastricht University, the Netherlands
The book by Austermann provides a novel and illuminating analysis of the opportunities and challenges faced by the EU Delegations in dealing with EU foreign and diplomacy policy matters. It explores in a lucid fashion the complexities embedded in the inter-relationship between the Member States' embassies, the newly formed European External Action Service and the strengthened EU Delegations. By assessing the strength of EU Delegations globally in the form of an index, the book offers valuable explanations on why a centralised European diplomacy is emerging at different speeds in different so-called third countries. This empirically grounded and theoretically informed book will make an important contribution to the study and debate of EU foreign and diplomacy policy and deserves a wide readership among students, scholars and practitioners alike. - Emil J. Kirchner, Department of Government University of Essex, UK
Out of the numerous studies on the European foreign policy inspired by the Lisbon reform, this book from Dr. Frauke Austermann offers an unique and timely contribution. With its focus on the enhanced roles of the Union delegations around the world, carefully designed assumptions and testing method, Dr, Austermann is able to give the first assessment of the centralizing trend of EU's diplomacy beyond Brussels, as well as the enabling and constraining factors in the unfolding process. - Chen Zimin, School of International Relations and Public Affairs, Fudan University, China