The environment as a strategic priority in the European Union–Brazil partnership

Subtitle
is the EU behaving as a normative power or soft imperialist?
Publication Name
International Environmental Agreements: Politics Law and Economics
Volume, number, page
14:1, pp.47-64
Year of Publication
2014
Author(s)
AFIONIS Stavros
STRINGER Lindsay C
Organization Name
Springer
Publisher
Springer
City
Berlin
Country of Publication
Germany
Full Date
2014
ISBN or ISSN
15731553
Considered Countries
Brazil
Category
Academic articles
Theme
BILATERAL RELATIONS UE - LAC
Strategic Partnerships
Keyword(s)
Climate change policy
Climate Change
Latin America
European Union
Deforestation
Biofuels
Mercosur
Multilateralism
Environment
Environmental policy
Sustainability
Political Dialogue
Abstract
In 2007, Brazil entered the European Union’s (EU) list of strategic partners; a token of recognition of the place Brazil occupies in current global affairs. Although promoting bilateral environmental convergence is a stated priority, cooperation between the EU and Brazil in this policy field is largely under-researched, raising interesting questions as to whether the current state of play could support EU claims for the normative orientation of its external environmental policy. Through an analysis of partnership activities in the fields of deforestation and biofuels, we suggest that while normative intentions may be regarded as a motivating force, critically viewing EU foreign environmental policy through a ‘soft imperialism’ lens could offer a more holistic understanding of the current state of bilateral cooperation. While the normative power thesis can be substantiated with regard to deforestation, we argue that by erecting barriers to shield its domestic biofuels production, the EU is placing trade competitiveness and economic growth above its normative aspirations. Subsequently, the partial adoption of sustainable development as an EU norm leads to policy incoherence and contradictory actions.
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