This course provides an introduction to the law of the European Union's (EU) external relations. It is aimed at students of law as well as Governance or (European) Public Policy programs. Upon successful completion the awarded credit points can be used to acquire the "Pflichtfremdsprachenschein" (§ 24 II JAPO) and the "Certificate of Studies in European, Comparative and International Law" (CECIL).

The external relations of the EU are of great legal and practical importance. The EU is an active international actor, for example by concluding international agreements, participating in the work of international organisations or legislating foreign relations matters. This practice gives rise to many legal questions which often have constitutional significance and thus require the involvement of the Court of Justice of the European Union.

The course is structured as following: Unit I sets the scene for the study of the EU’s external relations by providing a brief introduction to public international law. Unit II introduces the EU as an international actor. It outlines the EU’s foreign policy objectives, the role it plays globally as well as the general structure of the Treaty provisions on the EU’s external action. Unit III and IV concern the existence and nature of the EU’s external competences, respectively. Unit V explains how we can determine the scope, width and ambit of the different categories of competences examined in Unit III and IV. Unit VI concerns the duty of sincere or loyal cooperation that is enshrined in Art.4(3) TEU. Unit VII examines the procedure for international treaty negotiation, signature, conclusion and termination under EU law. Moreover, it explains the procedural rules for EU decision-making in bodies established by an international agreement and for requesting an Opinion of the Court of Justice on the compatibility of agreements with EU law. Unit VIII the making of agreements that are jointly concluded by the Union and its Member States ("mixed agreements"), taking particular account of two recent events: The “Dutch veto” of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement (AA) as well as the initial rejection of the signature of CETA by Wallonia. Unit IX and X concern the effects of international law on the EU legal order. The last four units assess specific external relations policy fields: Unit XI concerns the Common Commercial Policy, taking particular account of EU trade and investment agreements. Unit XII takes a closer look at the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP). Unit XIII outlines the main EU policies for neighbourhood relations: Enlargement policy and the European Neighbourhood Policy. The final unit analyses a recent development with significant implications for the EU’s external relations: the withdrawal of the UK as a Member State of the European Union, commonly referred to as “Brexit”.

Law students will be able to define the European Union's unique legal framework, its foreign relation's objectives and have an in-depth knowledge of the EU's capacity to act on the international stage. In particular, they will be able to delineate the scope and nature of the EU's and the Member States' respective external competence. Moreover, they can understand the general institutional framework of and (treaty-making) procedure for conducting foreign relations on the EU level, identify current and topical problems for EU external action and formulate basic legal solutions. As EU external relations law is, by its nature, a very politically charged topic, students from a non-legal background equally benefit from the course. They will gain a basic understanding of EU legal norms and procedural rules and will be able to apply them in an interdisciplinary manner by considering legal solutions to political problems. Students will improve their command of the English language.

Registration via https://kurse.vhb.org/VHBPORTAL/kursprogramm/kursprogramm.jsp?kDetail=true&COURSEID=15344,76,1195,1