Publication

This article examines the newly established collaboration of the European External Action Service (EEAS) with the member states and other EU institutions for the purpose of advancing the EU’s interest in the Eastern and Southern neighborhoods. The paper argues that the EEAS needs sufficient resources to bring added value to the neighborhood policy. The Service’s effort to re-conceptualize the European Neighborhood Policy (ENP) as a tool through which the EU assists partner governments to conduct reforms could progress if the EEAS overcomes the double standards in dealing with the neighbors.