The European Union External Relations in the Field of Culture. Policy Weaknesses

Abstract

The EU’s foreign policy in the field of culture is a relatively new and under-explored area of the EU activity. Its operation was defined by the Treaty of Lisbon, imposing on it programming and initiative and representation powers of the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security (HR), the EEAS and EU Delegations. The EU cultural diplomacy is also conducted – on a partnership basis with the European Union – by the institutes of culture of the member states registered in the Association of National Institutes of European Union (EUNIC) and their regional Clusters. The article aims to follow in the evolution analysis mode the priorities contained in the EU’s external relations in the field of culture (as well as institutional analysis) and verify whether the political instruments applied to the EU ‘soft power’ are sufficient to effectively shape Europe’s cultural image in the world. The thesis of this article is that EU external relations in the cultural sector are characterized by poor politics, and therefore have no chance of reaching the maturity phase, thus creating a solid basis for the civilizational impact of European culture, understood in an integrative way, i.e. as the implementation of the “unity in diversity” paradigm.