The Emergence of a Global Actor: The Geographic Expansion and Institutional Reinforcement of the External Activities of the European Union

Three developments have transformed the European Union into a global actor: the accumulation of external competencies, from trade to CFSP-ESDP and to the external aspects of JHA cooperation; a geographical expansion from the regional to the global; and institutional and administrative developments in matters of external “governance.” After presenting a panoramic view of the geographical expansion of significant external agreements and the strengthening of the EU’s institutional apparatus, this paper concludes with a discussion of European power.