Regulatory force

The first discussions about the potential role of the European Community in world politics arose in the early 1970s. It was then that the concept of “civil power” of Europe was formulated by journalist and analyst Francois Duchenne. Duchenne drew attention to the fact that the European community seeks to use not military, but civilian methods of influence on other states ^[2] . Moreover, the policy itself, based on the principles of collective action and responsibility, general social equality, tolerance and justice, is aimed not only at specific goals, but primarily at creating a favorable international environment ^[3] .

The idea of ​​“civil power” of the European Community was supported and recognized by the academic community during the period of international tension, however, the aggravation of relations between the USSR and the USA in the early 1980s led many researchers to reconsider their approaches and again look at the world through the eyes of political realists , actually returning to the classical understanding of “power” as a combination of military power and industrial potential, which is classical for this branch of the science of international relations. Australian researcher Hadley Bull pointed to the contradictory idea of ​​the “civil power” of the European Community, stressing that such “power” was based on the military power of its member states, but not the community itself. Headley Bull also urged Europe to rely less on US support and to seek independence in defense and security matters ^[4] .

The end of the Cold War and the departure from the bipolar system of international relations caused a new discussion about the role and place of the European Union in the world. The international agenda, in addition to the traditional issues of war and peace, includes a discussion of the process of globalization , respect for human rights, the promotion of democracy, humanitarian interventions , and global climate change. Since that time, the EU began to formulate its foreign policy priorities, based on international ethical standards. The objectives of the EU foreign policy are the maintenance of democratic values, the protection of human rights and the spread of good governance around the world, at the global level ^[2] . In 2002, Danish researcher Ian Manners, summarizing the results of EU foreign policy, developed the concept of “normative power”, which was a response to criticism of the concept of “civil power” by the Australian scientist Hadley Bull (see above).

Ian Manners believes that the “normative power” of the European Union lies in “the ability to shape the concept of the“ norm ”in international relations” ^[5] . From his point of view, a revision of the concepts of “civilian” and “military” force is required, since the foundations of these concepts have lost relevance with the end of the Cold War ^[5] . Manners suggests abandoning state-centrist approaches and not reducing the EU’s “strength” to the sum of its military-political and economic potentials. The strength of the EU, according to Manners, is expressed through “ideas, opinions and conscience” ^[6] .

Ian Manners suggests considering “normative power” as a special form of “power” of an actor in world politics, which in its ideal form does not manifest itself through material incentives or physical coercion, but is expressed in the ability to apply the principle of normative justification of actions. For an actor who uses “normative force,” power influence is secondary in comparison with the ability to influence the behavior of other actors. A key characteristic of “normative power” is its ability to formulate and apply normative principles in the international arena in a “normatively stable” form, that is, normatively explainable and justified for other actors and stable for future generations ^[7] .

According to Ian Manners, “normative power” can serve as a characteristic of an actor in world politics in terms of its international identity. Manners suggests determining how close each actor in world politics is to the “ideal type of normative power.” An “ideal normative power,” according to Manners’s concept, will adhere to the “normative justification” of actions in order to form the understanding of the international community that a more equitable world is a “norm” to which we should strive ^[7] . Thus, any strong state is capable of influencing the idea of ​​“normal” in international relations, however, if the state does not proceed from the principle of “normative stability”, it cannot be considered a “normative power”, since it uses its own imperial approach when building relationships with the outside world.

Ian Manners identifies three foundations of the “normative power” of the European Union: a special historical experience (the desire for peace associated with the memory of two World Wars), a special hybrid nature of the political system and the political and legal nature of the EU ^[5] .

The EU, when using regulatory power, relies on universal norms. The sources of norms are international law and the constitutional traditions of the EU countries, including the rule of law, democracy, a culture of compromise, focus on interaction and cooperation. The EU seeks to involve both the member states of the association and other states in as many international treaties as possible. The protection of human rights and the stability of institutions have become criteria for membership in a union, which distinguishes the EU from other integration groups formed on the basis of mutual benefit or in connection with the need to ensure collective (or regional) security.

The concept of “normative power” continues to be criticized by researchers, who draw attention to the fact that the European Union is militarized to the same extent as many other states of the modern world. When discussing EU initiatives in the field of the Common Security and Defense Policy (ABCD) - the creation of quick reaction forces, participation in crisis management in the Congo , Sudan , Bosnia and Herzegovina - some researchers perceive them as the beginning of EU power leadership in contrast to or in partnership with the USA, which can weaken the normative component of its influence ^[8] .

The American journalist and political scientist Robert Cagan in his work “On Paradise and Power” attacked the EU with fierce criticism, arguing that the main reason for strengthening the non-military force of the EU is its failure as a military power ^[9] .

Many experts argue that the EU deliberately chose non-military means of ensuring its own influence. For example, the Greek political scientist Calypso Nikolaidis calls the phenomenon of EU influence in international relations “the power of the superpowerful”, but he does not forget to recall that Europe has become a zone of peace thanks to the military power of the United States ^[10] . And in the article by Hettne and Söderbaum researchers “Civil power or soft imperialism,” we are talking about a combination of elements of “normative power” with traditional military-political methods, which contradicts the original concept of Ian Manners. Soft imperialism presupposes more vigorous activity, a combination of traditional methods of promoting one's values ​​and ideas with “civic power”. In fact, this means using “ soft power ” with harsh methods. Soft imperialism presumes, rather, the imposition of its strategy and its understanding of the world, carried out in its own interests, rather than creating a genuine (interregional) dialogue.

A significant event in the scientific world of the early 1990s. was the development of the concept of "soft power" by the American researcher Joseph Nye , which he contrasts with the traditional "hard power". " Soft power ", according to Nye, is the ability to influence others through cooperation in the formation of a program of action, persuasion and positive positive impact to achieve the desired results ^[11] . However, the question of the relationship between “ soft power ” and “normative power” remains poorly developed and poorly understood. The weight of Manners' arguments is disputed by many experts. In his works, he pointed out that “ soft power ” is an empirical design and foreign policy tool, and “normative power” is a purely theoretical concept based on the processes of social diffusion and normative practices. Moreover, Ian Manners believes that the term “ soft power ” was used by Joseph Nyeh to describe US foreign policy, which implies a combination of “soft” and “hard” mechanisms, which makes it unsuitable for studying the European Union ^[6] .

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