- Docente: Catherine Hoeffler
The rising tensions between China and the United States, renewed opposition to international economic institutions such the WTO, as well as the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine forcefully raise the question of the EU’s place in current international reconfiguration. Against the previous model, often described as (neo)liberal, current trends are often understood under the heading of the return of geopolitics. States are increasingly taking security issues into account in economic exchanges and resorting to more dirigiste forms of economic interventionism. At the same time, this is accompanied by a rise in military tensions and global rearmament. These dynamics are calling into question both the role of Europe in international coalitions and the content of the EU’s policies, which until now have been largely geared towards promoting multilateral cooperation and, in particular, liberal rules and institutions in the field of trade and investment. States and the European Union alike seem to have taken this geopolitical turn, reconsidering the ways in which they regulate markets and steer the production of public goods such as security or environmental preservation.
The aim of this course is to examine the rise of a “geopolitical Europe”, against a deterministic and uniform reading of the dynamics at work. To do so requires looking simultaneously at two dimensions:
· The EU and the geopolitical turn. How can we explain the advent of 'Geopolitical Europe' and the concrete forms it takes? We need to examine the political, security, economic and technological rationales that explain the evolution of EU positions in this area. Next to understanding its roots, analysing the Geopolitical EU necessitates inquiring into the specific European Union policies and their instruments.
· The promises and risks of such geopolitical turn. The changes at work raise important questions for European states and the Union: does the rise in tensions mean a crystallisation of alliances between the West on the one hand and the Majority World on the other? How can Europe use these upheavals as an opportunity to confront the postcolonial critique and rethink its relations with the 'Majority World'? What are the foundations and gendered implications of this geopolitical shift? How can Europe articulate a discourse and policies that take these issues into account? What will this geopolitical turn entail for the EU’s unity? Will it lead to more fortification or fragmentation?
This course aims to provide empirical knowledge about the EU’s geopolitical turn, its actors and policies, as well as analytical skills to enable the students to interrogate, explain and potentially ultimately engage with these dynamics.