Promoting the Rule of Law in the European Neighbourhood Policy – Strategic or Normative Power?

This article scrutinises the EU’s rule of law promotion in the ENP countries in Moldova, Ukraine and in the Mediterranean countries, Morocco and Tunisia. The author argues that there are variations in policy outcomes across policy initiatives owing to the contested nature of the policy objective and the differences in the policy making process. She draws on bureaucratic politics to make the argument. In conclusion she observes that the observed power struggles make it difficult to classify the EU either as a strategic or a normative power. Empirical illustrations are drawn from the EU’s anti-drugs, anti-corruption and judicial reform policies