An open Europe in a multipolar world: lessons from Portuguese experience

Abstract:

In the first part of this article, with the benefit of a twenty year hindsight view of EU membership, I describe how international issues fit with Portuguese thinking about Europe, with a special emphasis on the issue of enlargement. In the second part, in light of the re-emergence of multipolarity, I examine how the presidency and the Union can reaffirm multilateralism, the strategic cornerstone of EU foreign policy. The third section discusses the 'internal as external' or 'inter-mesticity,' because the global influence of the Union depends in large measure on its internal configuration. Finally, there is an annex providing essential economic and political data on Portugal.