Managing EU-US relations. Actors, institutions and the new transatlantic agenda

Abstract:

This book examines changes in the EU-US political and economic relations in the 1990s. It is organised over eight chapters including a comprehensive introduction and an informative conclusion.

Chapter one by way of introduction explores the new transatlantic dialogue, then chapter two examines the role of intergovernmental decision makers in the establishment of the institutional and policy reach of that dialogue. Chapter three looks at the part played by transgovernmental actors in setting and shaping transatlantic decisions. Chapter four considers the participation of formal interest based international networks in transatlantic decision shaping, with focus on business, consumer and environmental issues groups. Chapter five examines the decisions surrounding transatlantic policy on the trafficking of women in Central and Eastern Europe. Chapter six examines intergovernmental, transgovernmental and transnational inputs to the EU-US Mutual Recognition Agreements relating to regulatory standards in the production of goods being endorsed on both sides of the Atlantic. Chapter seven addresses the differences experienced in the banana dispute and the extent to which they showed the failure of transatlantic institutions in issues of dispute resolution. Chapter eight presents the conclusions drawn from the research and considers the wider implications for the EU-US role in international relationships.

The work will interest scholars, students and researchers engaged in the politics of international trade, comparative politics and international relations.

Rebecca Steffenson is Senior Research Associate at the Regional Development Institute, Northern Illinois University.