Geopolitical oblivion or a pragmatic approach? Britain, the EU and European foreign policy in 2012

ECFR event with Gideon Rachman, Chief Foreign Affairs Commentator, Financial Times,
Dr Heather Grabbe, Director, Open Society European Policy Institute
Dr Spyros Economides, Senior Lecturer, LSE
Chair: Susi Dennison, ECFR

2012 has seen the EU as an entity destabilised as it forges a path out of its economic and financial difficulties, and the UK appear to drift away from the EU. The UK’s role and even membership in the EU have been questioned, with David Cameron coming under increasing pressure within Parliament to take a tougher line on the EU budget and repatriation of powers.

This year’s European Foreign Policy Scorecard however has found that the UK has continued to play a constructive and driving role in foreign policymaking. The UK, along with France and Germany, has, as in 2011, continued to be one of the main leaders in developing and implementing foreign policy initiatives. The latestECFR Scorecard is availbale here: http://www.ecfr.eu/scorecard/2013