The Constitutional debacle and external relations

"The Constitutional Debacle and External Relations" argues that even with a ratified
Constitutional Treaty, many of the innovations in the external relations area would have been difficult to introduce. In the absence of a Constitutional Treaty for the foreseeable future the author sees limited scope for major overhaul of EU external relations within the scope of the existing treaties and cautions against any temptation to cherry-pick the Constitutional Treaty. The current period of uncertainty calls for open, but structured, debate. In light of this the author argues strongly for the continuation of the deliberations of the working group on the European External Action Service, albeit in a slightly broader format, since their discussions could serve as a valuable platform for an open debate about the role of the EU on the world stage.