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About the selection

This selection of books and articles mainly from the Library and e‑Resources' collection and e‑collection, obtained through the search tool Find‑eR.
Access may be restricted to Commission staff or to users at subscribing institutions.
See also Reading suggestions on Europe and global security, August 2020 (on Commission intranet).

Material types

Book for loan. Request a loan of the print version via the title link.
E-journal article: Title links directly to the full text article (from a Commission pc).
Ebook, EU paper, Article, Report, Website: Title links directly to free full text.
Ebook on demand: Request access via the title link. See manual.

The European Union and the United Nations

Article 21(1) of the Treaty on European Union: “The [European] Union's action on the international scene shall be guided by the principles which have inspired its own creation, development and enlargement, and which it seeks to advance in the wider world: democracy, the rule of law, the universality and indivisibility of human rights and fundamental freedoms, respect for human dignity, the principles of equality and solidarity, and respect for the principles of the United Nations Charter and international law.

The Union shall seek to develop relations and build partnerships with third countries, and international, regional or global organisations which share the principles referred to in the first subparagraph. It shall promote multilateral solutions to common problems, in particular in the framework of the United Nations.”

European Union involvement in the United Nations system: Broad partnership based on shared commitment to multilateralism
Think tank paper by Ionel Zamfir, Tessa Farde (staff EP) for European Parliamentary Research Service, 2020, 36 p. Versions in French and German.

Over the years, the EU has become a key player in the United Nations system. The UN remains an organisation of sovereign states, and this is reflected in the functioning of its bodies, agencies and programmes. The EU enjoys observer status in many of these and is the only international organisation to have secured enhanced observer status in the UN General Assembly. The EU leverages its influence through its significant financial contribution to the UN system, through its enhanced partnerships with various entities within the UN system, and through close coordination with its Member States on positions to be defended in the organisation.

The participation of the European Union in the work of the United Nations: Evolving to reflect the new realities of regional organizations
eJournal article by Evan Brewer (Vanderbilt Univ., US). In: International Organizations Law Review, 2012, Pages 181–225.

In May 2011, the UN General Assembly provided the European Union with an "enhanced observer status" to participate more extensively in the General Assembly. The EU needed to restructure its participation in international organizations following the Lisbon Treaty, and this resolution effected some of those changes. Numerous UN member states expressed concerns that the expanded participation rights might compromise the integrity of the General Assembly as an inter-state entity. Ultimately, the rights granted pose a minor speculative threat, but offer a considerable opportunity at increasing the ability of regional organizations to better represent the common positions of their member states in the General Assembly and to improve the efficiency of the General Assembly.

Research handbook on the European Union and international organizations
Book for loan. Edited by Ramses A. Wessel (Univ. Groningen, NL), Jed Odermatt (City Univ. London, UK). Elgar, 2019, 702 pages.

Over the years, the European Union has developed relationships with other international institutions, mainly as a result of its increasingly active role as a global actor and the transfer of competences from the Member States to the EU. This book presents a comprehensive and critical assessment of the EU’s engagement with other international institutions, examining both the EU’s representation and cooperation as well as the influence of these bodies on the development of EU law and policy.

EU and ILO: Shaping the future of work
Think tank paper by Francesco Pastore, Simonas Gausas, Izabela Styczynska and other external consultants for European Parliament, 2019, 137 pages.

This Report reviews the main results of some 60 years of collaboration between the European Union (EU) and the International Labour Office (ILO) and coincides with the 100th anniversary of the ILO. Started in 1958, EU-ILO collaboration has intensified over recent years, covering an ever-greater range of issues to address the future of work and the challenges it poses to the sustainability of decent work and social protection.
 

EU-UN cooperation: Confronting change in the multilateral system
Think tank paper by Alfonso Medinilla, Pauline Veron, Vera Mazzara (staff at European Centre for Development Policy Management). ECDPM paper, 2019. 52 pages.

This paper looks at the role of the European Union and its member states in the UN. It examines opportunities for deepening EU-UN cooperation in the years to come, in light of the 2019 reform of the UN development system, and taking into account the EU’s evolving role as a global player.

Negotiating at the United Nations: A practitioner's guide
eBook by Rebecca W. Gaudiosi (Univ. of Mass. Boston, US), Jimena Leiva Roesch (International Peace Institute, US), Wu Ye-Min (Ministry of Foreign Affairs Singapore). Taylor & Francis, 2019, 177 pages.

This book offers a comprehensive practitioner's guide to negotiating at the United Nations. Although much of the content can be applied broadly, the guide focuses on navigating multilateral negotiations at the UN. The book is a tool to help new UN negotiators, explaining basic negotiation concepts and offering insight into the complexities of the UN system. It also offers a playbook for cooperation for negotiators at any level, exploring the dynamics of relationships and alliances, the art of chairing a negotiation, and the importance of balancing the power asymmetries present in any multilateral discussion.

The changing global order: Challenges and prospects
eBook edited by Madeleine O. Hosli, Joren Selleslaghs (both Leiden Univ., NL). Springer, 2020, 484 pages.

This volume offers a comprehensive evaluation of the concept of global order, with a particular emphasis on the role of regional organisations within global governance institutions such as the United Nations. Building from a solid theoretical base it draws upon the expertise of numerous leading international scholars offering a broad array of timely and relevant case studies.

Group politics in UN multilateralism
eBook edited by Katie Laatikainen (Adelphi Univ., US), Karen Smith (London School of Economics, UK). Brill, 2020, 342 pages.

Group politics in UN multilateralism provides a new perspective on diplomacy and negotiation. UN multilateralism is shaped by long-standing group dynamics as well as shifting, ad-hoc groupings. These intergroup dynamics are key to understanding diplomatic practice at the UN.

European Union contested: Foreign policy in a new global context
eBook edited by Editors Elisabeth Johansson-Nogués, Martijn C. Vlaskamp, Esther Barbé (all from IBEI Barcelona, ES). Springer, 2020, 211 pages.

This book, based on ten case studies, explores some of the most important current challenges to EU foreign policy norms, whether at the global, glocal or intra-EU level. The case studies cover contestation of the EU's fundamental norms, organizing principles and standardized procedures in relation to the abolition of the death penalty, climate, Responsibility to Protect, peacebuilding, natural resource governance, the International Criminal Court, lethal autonomous weapons systems, trade, the security-development nexus and the use of consensus on foreign policy matters in the European Parliament.