The coherence of the European Union as an international actor : facing the challenge of immigration and asylum

Abstract: The incoherence into which the European Union falls in particular areas might be conceived as weaknesses, which put into question the very conception of the European Union as a civilian power (or “soft power”) and cast some doubts about the new logic that would allegedly lie behind this conception. Does a specific European model of external action exist? Are there any differences between the way in which the European Union approaches International Law and the way in which hegemonic States do so? What is the relationship between external action and legitimation in the case of the European Union? All these questions are addressed in this article, being the underlying idea that the European model is clearly delineated in the European discourse. Nevertheless the lines of such a model are being blurred due, at least in part, to the own European Union incoherencies, which are particularly abundant in certain areas, such as immigration and asylum. The need arises for the European Union to completely develop its civil power model, for this will be beneficial for the EU itself, for the international society and eventually for international law.