The Northern Dimension (ND) initiative officially launched by the EU a decade ago has recently been transformed in order to better reflect the current situation in Northern Europe, where four Baltic Sea states became EU members in 2004 and where Russia and the EU are developing their relationship based on four Common Spaces. From initially being developed as an EU foreign policy initiative, the ND is today considered a ‘common policy’ of four equal partners—the EU, Russia, Norway and Iceland. The rather innovative elements of the ‘new’ ND policy make it challenging to address from a conceptual point of view. In the study at hand the author addresses the characteristics of the ‘new’ ND in relation to its development over the last decade. The author argues that insights drawn from international regime theory seem pertinent when it comes to conceptualizing the transformation of the ND into a ‘common policy’ of four equal partners based on a number of emerging sectoral partnerships, contributing to its concrete implementation.

Since the end of the Cold War, regional cooperation and strengthened interregional relations have become a key foreign policy objective on the European Union’s (EU) foreign policy agenda and a preferential platform in its general development policy. When it comes to Latin America, despite being the leading donor of development aid to the region, Latin America has always taken a rather marginal position in the EU’s interregional development cooperation. Yet, the interregional development cooperation that currently exists between the two regions is of a rather complex nature since Latin American states do not represent one single regional organisation. Instead, the EU’s interregional cooperation takes place at both regional and sub-regional levels, and besides channelling development assistance to those two levels, EU financial aid is also distributed bilaterally to individual states of the region. The study at hand aims at exploring the nature of EU interregional development cooperation with Latin America by looking at its constituent levels. Is there a regional dimension in the EU’s development assistance to Latin American states and can the Union’s support for regional cooperation be considered a significant thread in its development activities in Latin America? Among the three levels involved in EU-Latin America development cooperation – the bilateral, sub-regional and regional one – is any of them more dominant than the others?

This study focuses on the EU ‘value diffusion strategy’ included in its foreign policy with a particular emphasis on the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP). The main argument is that the ENP can be seen as a framework through which the EU is attempting to promote its common values and norms. Instead of offering a future EU membership as the main ‘carrot’ for reforms – an efficient instrument to diffuse its values to neighbouring European states – it is trying to exert influence by other means, such as using discursive practices, opening up EU agencies, programmes and policies for the participation of the partner countries, granting financial aid, as well as by institutionalising the relationship. Persuasive mechanisms, conditionality and coercive instruments may theoretically be employed, although a rather ‘soft’ version of positive conditionality seems to be a dominant feature, aiming at promoting norm compliance and reforms by the partner countries in the ENP.

Summary: This study explores the EU "value diffusion strategy" includedin its foreign policy, seen through the European Neighborhood Policy (ENP).The main argument is that the ENP can be seen as a framework through whichthe EU is trying to diffuse its common values and norms. Instead of offering afuture EU membership as the main "carrot" for reforms - an efficient instrumentto diffuse its values to neighboring European states - it is trying to exertinfluence by other means, such as using discursive practices, opening up EUagencies, programs and policies for the participation of the partner countries,granting financial aid, as well as by institutionalizing the relationship. Mainlypositive conditionality is present, aiming at promoting norm compliance andreforms by the partner countries. However, negative conditionality may beapplied as well.