Exporting the Acquis Communautaire Through European Union External Agreements

This book is a study of the legal dimensions of the concept of acquis communautaire. Using primary sources, the book identifies and delimits the scope of the term in different contexts within EU legal discourse. It starts by tracing the internal and external dimensions of acquis communautaire. These dimensions are distinguished by different objectives. The major objective of acquis communautaire in its internal dimension is to enable the consistent development of European Union law, while preserving EU patrimony by Member States. The objective of the acquis communautaire application in its external dimension is twofold. First, it is to export the acquis communautaire overseas, in order to push third countries to the forefront of the acquired level of economic, political, and legal cooperation achieved by the EU. Second, it is to stimulate third countries to share European and international common democratic values and thereby to preserve integrity of the acquis communautaire in relations with third countries. It is argued that the acquis communautaire in its external dimension is not coherent, but mirrors the specific objectives of relations between the EU and third countries. In order to investigate the rationale behind this research hypothesis, the book examines in detail the terms of a variety of EU external agreements from association to trade, development, and co-operation. It provides a more detailed insight into the linkage between the political environment and the obligations undertaken in relation to the acquis communautaire by a third country in agreements with the EU. It is concluded that the acquis communautaire is a complex legal category of a dynamic nature. One must take into consideration the general objectives of EU external agreements - and the status of bilateral relations between the EU and third countries - in order to comprehend the fullest scope of the applicable acquis communautaire. Therefore, it could be argued that the acquis communautaire within EU external agreements is a dynamic category that directly depends, not only on the explicit objectives of these agreements, but also on the wider framework of relations between the parties and the general political climate of bilateral relations. (Series: Heidelberger Schriften zum Wirtschaftsrecht und Europarecht - Vol. 64)