Fragmentation in the Governance of EU External Relations: Legal Institutional Dilemmas and the New Constitution for Europe

The European Union, an Ongoing Process of Integration contains 27 original contributions authored by prominent EU lawyers from academia and practice and concentrates on the three main areas of European integration that mark the career path of Alfred E. Kellermann: institutional and constitutional aspects (part I), general principles and substantive aspects (part II), and new Member States and Eastern Europe (part III). The contributions included in this Liber Amicorum vary from thematic in-depth studies to studies of a comparative nature. Their themes cover, inter alia, the structure of the Union according to the Constitution for Europe, the changes and challenges with which the Union¿s institutions are faced, including the creation of the positions of the President of the European Council and the Union Minister for Foreign Affairs, the future paths of flexibility (enhanced cooperation, partial agreements and pioneer groups), the role of national competition authorities and national courts under Regulation 1/2003, the constitutional preparation for EU accession in the new Member States, and the influence of European integration on the development of law in Russia. All contributions have been written in honour of Alfred E. Kellermann. Born in The Hague, raised in Switzerland during the Second World War and having studied and trained at Leiden University and at the European Commission¿s Legal Service in Brussels in the founding years of the European integration process, Doctor Honoris Causa Alfred E. Kellermann is a European by nature and vocation. For almost forty years, Alfred E. Kellermann has worked for the T.M.C. Asser Institute in The Hague. For many, he has become the face of the Institute in the Netherlands and abroad. This is the result of his work as a lecturer and consultant in EU law in countless short and long-term projects all over Europe, including Russia. Perhaps his finest accomplishment in raising awareness and expertise in the law of the European Union concerns the organisation of the famous `Asser Colloquia¿ on EU law and the publication of their proceedings

Legality in EU Common Foreign and Security Policy:The Choice of the Appropriate Legal Basis

The Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) of the EU finds itself between exceptionalism and normalization. Because of its special position and because the legislative procedure is not applicable to this policy area, questions of legality are not usually raised in the context of CFSP. At the same time, CFSP has become a policy area to which most EU rules and principles simply apply. This chapter assesses questions of (the review of) legality in the context of CFSP. As questions of legality make sense only in the context of legal acts, this chapter will first revisit the nature of CFSP acts as well as their consequences in the light of the ‘normalization’ of CFSP. Second, questions of legality will be assessed in relation to the legal basis of CFSP acts, and in particular, the choice of legal basis and the possibility of combining CFSP and other legal bases to enhance options for legality review

Consequences of Brexit for international agreements concluded by the EU and its Member States

The impact of Brexit on the external relations of the EU and the UK runs the risk of receiving less attention because of the difficult internal negotiations on the future of the UK-EU relationship. Yet, the legal complexities related to the fact that the UK will no longer be part of the EU’s external relations regime are equally challenging, and increasingly present themselves now that “Brexit day” approaches. The present contribution analyses the consequences of Brexit for the UK to negotiate and conclude new international agreements, as well as the impact of the UK’s withdrawal on existing international agreements concluded by the EU and its Member States with almost all States in the world