Leadership and Negotiation in the European Union

Description

In this 2006 book, Jonas Tallberg offers a novel perspective on some of the most fundamental questions about international cooperation and European Union politics. Offering the first systematic theoretical and empirical exploration of the influence wielded by chairmen of multilateral negotiations, Tallberg develops a rationalist theory of formal leadership and demonstrates its explanatory power through carefully selected case studies of EU negotiations. He shows that the rotating Presidency of the EU constitutes a power platform that grants governments unique opportunities to shape the outcomes of negotiations. His provocative analysis establishes that Presidencies, while performing vital functions for the EU, simultaneously exploit their privileged political position to favour national interests. Extending the scope of the analysis to international negotiations on trade, security and the environment, Tallberg further demonstrates that the influence of the EU Presidency is not an isolated occurrence but the expression of a general phenomenon in world politics - the power of the chair.

Jonas Tallberg is an Associate Professor in the Department of Political Science, Stockholm University and a Research Fellow at the Swedish Institute of International Affairs. He has published numerous articles on international cooperation and EU politics and is the author of European Governance and Supranational Institutions: Making States Comply (2003).

"Jonas Tallberg offers an innovative theory of leadership in international negotiations and applies it to the European Union's Council presidency. The result is an important contribution to our understanding of the key role of 'the chair' in negotiations: chiefly in the EU but also in other international organizations." Simon Bulmer, Jean Monnet Professor of European Politics, University of Manchester "This book is a must read for all who want to use rational choice institutionalism and general bargaining theory. Jonas Tallberg succeeds admirably in showing why chairmanship in international negotiation arises and what difference it makes for bargaining outcomes. He empirically assesses his compelling theoretical claims by analyzing negotiations in the European Union under the chairmanship of the Council Presidency and other instances of international cooperation." Adrienne Heritier, Joint Chair, Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies, European University Institute "Jonas Tallberg makes a major theoretical advance clarifying how the European Union is governed and, even better, his theory concentrating on the neglected role of the chair in negotiations is not peculiar to Europe. I have already cited it. Students of multilateral negotiations and institutions elsewhere: take notice. A marvelous book." John Odell, Professor of International Relations, University of Southern California