This paper investigates how the external images of the European Union (EU) shape its identity vis-à-vis the USA and focuses on how Vietnamese elites perceive EU-sponsored norms in the context of the ongoing bilateral trade negotiations. The EU emerges as an actor able to export regulatory standards, improve the status of its trade partner within multilateral forums and, at the same time, respect the local ownership of the development process. At the same time, it is criticized for the lack of coherence in its foreign policy, its internal divisions and intrusiveness in Vietnamese domestic politics. Moreover, differences emerge in the way government and non-governmental actors portray the EU, further challenging its univocal representation as a political leader. These perceptions have implications concerning the EU’s ability to export its constitutive principles and values to Vietnam. More broadly, this case study provides insights into the prospects of a future interregional trade agreement with the ASEAN and carries out a critical assessment of the identity and role of the EU as a normative power.

The EU as a norm promoter through trade: The perceptions of Vietnamese elites / Sicurelli, Daniela. - In: ASIA EUROPE JOURNAL. - ISSN 1610-2932. - STAMPA. - 13:1(2015), pp. 23-39. [10.1007/s10308-014-0407-5]

The EU as a norm promoter through trade: The perceptions of Vietnamese elites

Sicurelli, Daniela
2015-01-01

Abstract

This paper investigates how the external images of the European Union (EU) shape its identity vis-à-vis the USA and focuses on how Vietnamese elites perceive EU-sponsored norms in the context of the ongoing bilateral trade negotiations. The EU emerges as an actor able to export regulatory standards, improve the status of its trade partner within multilateral forums and, at the same time, respect the local ownership of the development process. At the same time, it is criticized for the lack of coherence in its foreign policy, its internal divisions and intrusiveness in Vietnamese domestic politics. Moreover, differences emerge in the way government and non-governmental actors portray the EU, further challenging its univocal representation as a political leader. These perceptions have implications concerning the EU’s ability to export its constitutive principles and values to Vietnam. More broadly, this case study provides insights into the prospects of a future interregional trade agreement with the ASEAN and carries out a critical assessment of the identity and role of the EU as a normative power.
2015
1
Sicurelli, Daniela
The EU as a norm promoter through trade: The perceptions of Vietnamese elites / Sicurelli, Daniela. - In: ASIA EUROPE JOURNAL. - ISSN 1610-2932. - STAMPA. - 13:1(2015), pp. 23-39. [10.1007/s10308-014-0407-5]
File in questo prodotto:
File Dimensione Formato  
Sicurelli AEJ 2015.pdf

Solo gestori archivio

Descrizione: Articolo principale
Tipologia: Versione editoriale (Publisher’s layout)
Licenza: Tutti i diritti riservati (All rights reserved)
Dimensione 284.61 kB
Formato Adobe PDF
284.61 kB Adobe PDF   Visualizza/Apri
D. Sicurelli, The EU as a norm promoter.pdf

Open Access dal 01/04/2015

Tipologia: Post-print referato (Refereed author’s manuscript)
Licenza: Tutti i diritti riservati (All rights reserved)
Dimensione 203.76 kB
Formato Adobe PDF
203.76 kB Adobe PDF Visualizza/Apri

I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione

Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11572/101371
Citazioni
  • ???jsp.display-item.citation.pmc??? ND
  • Scopus 22
  • ???jsp.display-item.citation.isi??? 17
  • OpenAlex ND
social impact