Jean Monnet Guest Lecture: The European Union: A Normative Power?

The American University of Armenia is hosting a guest lecture about European Union foreign policy on Thursday, April 11 at 11:00am in Manoogian Hall. The lecture will be given by Dr. Thomas Diez, professor of political science and international relations at the University of Tübingen, Germany. Dr. Diez’s lecture, titled “The EU: A Normative Power?,” is organized by Dr. Syuzanna Vasilyan, AUA’s Jean Monnet Chair of European Studies and assistant professor of the political science and international affairs program.

The European Union is often characterized, and sees itself as a normative power. What is a normative power? What are the origins of this debate? What are the norms that the EU is supposed to stand for? And does reality correspond to this image? This lecture addresses these questions, and offers an overview of the “Normative Power Europe” debate. It will in particular focus on the problem that the European Union seems to be unable to transcend the basic rules of international society, and that its impact, to the extent it has any impact at all, is towards a “solidarisation” of international society, which in turn reinforces the tensions between the norms that the EU sees at its core.’

About the Speaker:

Thomas Diez is a Professor of Political Science and International Relations at the Institute for Political Science, University of Tübingen. He was formerly Professor of International Relations Theory in the Department of Political Science and International Studies at the University of Birmingham, where he was Head of Department from 2005-2008. Diez earned his PhD at the University of Mannheim. He was formerly a Research Fellow at the Copenhagen Peace Research Institute where he worked with Barry Buzan and Ole Waever. He studies international relations theory, European integration and conflict transformation and is best known for his contributions to the debate on the European Union’s normative power. Books he has edited or co-edited include The EU and the Cyprus Conflict: Modern Conflict, Postmodern Union, European Integration Theory, the European Union and Border Conflicts, Cyprus: A Conflict at the Crossroads and An Introduction to International Relations Theory: Perspectives and Themes. In 2009, Diez was awarded the 2009 Anna Lindh Award for contributions to the analysis of European foreign and security policy.