Journal Articles by Münevver Cebeci
Marmara Journal of European Studies , 2022
This article attempts to portray how the representation of the European Union (EU) as a model of ... more This article attempts to portray how the representation of the European Union (EU) as a model of peaceful regional integration helps legitimize the Union's imposition of a disciplining power on-what it refers to as-"conflict/fragile zones". With such legitimacy, the EU imposes its "best practices" on others, projects its own values and norms, and, thus, practices a European type of governmentality. While doing so, the EU pays little attention to the specific cultural, political, economic and social characteristics of "conflict-prone" societies and overlooks local/grassroots agency. This article thus argues that representing the EU as a model of peaceful integration contributes to its construction as an "ideal power" and legitimizes its peacebuilding efforts in other regions and countries. Its major conclusion is that the "ideal power Europe" meta-narrative produced and reproduced by EU researchers and policy-makers feeds into the Union's governmentality, helping it discipline recipient societies through its peacebuilding.
Geopolitics, 2020
This article provides a poststructuralist analysis of the interplay among the EU’s three temporal... more This article provides a poststructuralist analysis of the interplay among the EU’s three temporal selves, elucidating how the ideal representations of the EU’s past and future selves legitimize its statebuilding activities, particularly in cases of contested statehood in its neighbourhood, and reproduce the ideal European self today. The major argument of the article is that the discourse of “successful peaceful European integration” (employed to construct the EU’s past self) and the discourse on “the EU’s normative aspirations about state-/peace building” (employed to construct its future self) help constitute its present identity “as representing peace” – and, thus, as ideal – and legitimize its statebuilding practices. The article takes the ideal constructions of the EU’s past, present and future selves as spatio-temporal practices because they serve the continuous production and reproduction of the boundaries between a peaceful Europe and its conflictual others, which primarily refers to a geographical/geopolitical othering exercise.
Özet: Bu makalenin amacı, Avrupa Birliği (AB) uygulayıcıları (pratisyenleri) ve Avrupa çalışmalar... more Özet: Bu makalenin amacı, Avrupa Birliği (AB) uygulayıcıları (pratisyenleri) ve Avrupa çalışmaları tarafından sürekli olarak üretilen ve yeniden üretilen " ideal güç Avrupa " meta-anlatısını Türkiye örneği üzerinden çözümlemektir. Öne sürülen ana argüman, AB uygulayıcılarının ve araştırmacılarının Birlik ile ilgili olarak inşa etmiş/etmekte olduğu " ideal güç Avrupa " meta-anlatısının, Birliğin dış eylemleri genelinde ve Türkiye ile ilişkileri özelinde geliştirdiği pratikleri meşrulaştırdığıdır. Makale AB dış politikası ve hakkında oluşmuş olan akademik yazının post-yapısalcı bir eleştirisini yapmakta, bunu yaparken örneklerini AB-Türkiye ilişkilerinden seçmektedir. Dolayısı ile bu, bir kavramsal yaklaşımın belirli bir örneğe uygulanmasından çok, bir kavramsal yaklaşımın örneklerle ilerletilmesine yönelik olarak yazılmış bir makaledir.
Abstract: This article aims at deconstructing the ideal power Europe meta-narrative produced and reproduced by European Union (EU) practitioners and European Studies Researchers through the case of Turkey. Its major argument is that the " ideal power Europe " meta-narrative that the EU practitioners and researchers have been constructing legitimize the EU's practice in its external action in general and in its relations with Turkey in particular.
Many Turkish and European scholars have been (re)producing texts that praise the normative impact... more Many Turkish and European scholars have been (re)producing texts that praise the normative impact of the European Union (EU) which has helped the political transformation of Turkey. Nevertheless, the recent deterioration of democracy in the country indicates that the EU has been losing its transformative influence on Turkey. This might be regarded as de-Europeanisation. However, this article argues that the conceptual framework of de-Europeanisation can only
partially explain the current situation in Turkey and the EU’s impact, and that an analysis based on counter-conduct, as produced by EU governmentality, may provide insight into a subtler dynamic at work in the country.
NATO-EU cooperation almost came to a halt after 2004. This article scrutinizes the evolution of N... more NATO-EU cooperation almost came to a halt after 2004. This article scrutinizes the evolution of NATO-EU cooperation and argues that the major problem with regard to this cooperation goes beyond the vetoes by Turkey and Cyprus. Rather, there is a deeper and historically embedded dynamic at play: the traditional divide between Europeanists and Transatlanticists and how this leads to a decoupling in NATO. An understanding on the part of the Europeanist Allies that they also have commitments towards NATO is needed.
Marmara Avrupa Araştırmaları Dergisi-Journal of …, Jan 1, 2004
This article attempts to criticise European foreign policy research from within, portraying how s... more This article attempts to criticise European foreign policy research from within, portraying how some of its scripts are privileged and how they construct an ‘ideal power Europe’ meta-narrative. It argues that European foreign policy researchers engage in such construction through, firstly, assuming that the EU is post-sovereign/post-modern; secondly, naming the EU as a model; and, finally, conceptualising the Union as a normative power. The article scrutinises European foreign policy research through a deconstruction of its texts and displays how certain knowledge about the EU and European foreign policy is produced and reproduced. It further reveals how the ‘ideal power Europe’ meta-narrative contributes to the dominative dimension of European foreign policy.
Employing the conceptual frameworks provided by Ulrich Beck and Carl Schmitt; this article argues... more Employing the conceptual frameworks provided by Ulrich Beck and Carl Schmitt; this article argues that the reconstruction of the enemy in the global risk society reflects a reincarnation of a “crude” form of “the political”. As the powerful –the US– determines our knowledge on global terrorism, the global risk society itself becomes political, through the reconstruction of the enemy as inhuman and, thus, right-less: an enemy who should be captured and punished severely. This also refers to a deconstruction of the classical conception of war and its reconstruction as a special kind of war which involves the use and legitimization of measures that violate all rules of war, international law and human rights. This article concludes that attempts to define the “new terrorism” on positivist lines risk contributing to such reconstruction of the enemy and war, and, therefore, critical and poststructuralist approaches might offer more insight into understanding the post-9/11 world.
Defence Against Terrorism Review - DATR
Weapons of mass destruction (WMD) are defined by the European Union (EU) as “potentially the grea... more Weapons of mass destruction (WMD) are defined by the European Union (EU) as “potentially the greatest threat” to European security. Their acquisition by terrorists is particularly named as the “most frightening scenario” in the European Security Strategy. This article analyses the EU’s policy on WMD terrorism by looking at its non-proliferation efforts with a view to portraying their impact on counterterrorism. Rather than designing specific ways to address WMD terrorism, the EU attempts to tackle this issue as part of its non-proliferation policies. This is why the EU’s policy on WMD terrorism remains rather limited and declaratory. The EU encounters problems in conducting an effective policy of non-proliferation mainly because it is not a unitary actor. This surely affects the EU’s counter-WMD terrorism efforts and relationship with its partners such as the US and NATO. This article concludes that the EU should achieve coherence in its policies and design new ways for dealing with WMD terrorism.
Keywords: European Union, Weapons of Mass Destruction terrorism, Non-Proliferation, counterterrorism, Chemical Biological Radiological and Nuclear (CBRN)
terrorism
Full text: http://www.coedat.nato.int/publication/datr/volumes/datr8.pdf
Bu makalenin amacı, NATO-AB işbirliği ve Türkiye’nin Ortak Güvenlik ve Savunma Politikası’na katı... more Bu makalenin amacı, NATO-AB işbirliği ve Türkiye’nin Ortak Güvenlik ve Savunma Politikası’na katılımı ile ilgili açmazı değerlendirmektir. Makalenin ileri sürdüğü argüman, bu açmazını derinleştiren iki önemli faktör olduğudur. Bunlardan ilki NATO bünyesindeki Avrupacı ayrışmadır. İkinci faktör ise, AB’nin Türkiye’nin adaylık süreci çerçevesinde geliştirmiş olduğu asimetrik tutumu NATOAB işbirliği konularında da sergilemeye çalışmasıdır. Makalenin vardığı sonuç; NATO-AB-Türkiye üçgeninde yaşanan açmazın bir an önce çözülmesi gerektiği, ancak, yaşanan sorunların çözümü için sadece Türkiye’yi adres göstermenin doğru olmadığıdır.
Anahtar Kelimeler: NATO-AB İşbirliği, Ortak Güvenlik ve Savunma Politikası (OGSP), Avrupacı ayrışma, Türkiye
The aim of this article is to evaluate the stalemate in NATO-EU cooperation and in the involvement of Turkey in the Common Security and Defence Policy. Its major argument is that there are two factors that deepen this stalemate. The first one is the Europeanist decoupling in NATO. The second one is that the Union tries to pursue the asymmetrical relationship that it has with Turkey within the framework of the country’s EU candidacy in the realm of NATO-EU relations. The article concludes that this stalemate should be resolved as soon as possible, nevertheless, it would not be reasonable to point to Turkey, only, for finding a solution to the problem.
Key Words: NATO-EU Cooperation, Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP), Europeanist decoupling, Turkey
This article argues that Turkey and the EU do not have homogenous security
cultures; however, the... more This article argues that Turkey and the EU do not have homogenous security
cultures; however, their divergences are not greater than those among EU Member
States as well as those between the EU and its members. The article pursues this
argument by comparing and contrasting Turkey’s and the EU’s security cultures
through the employment of a constructivist ontology and the conceptual
frameworks of securitization and desecuritization. It first gives a conceptual
overview, defining the terms “security culture”, “holistic approach to security”
and “European security”. Then, it analyses Turkey’s and the EU’s security
cultures separately, looking into their processes of securitization and
desecuritization. Finally, it compares these two distinct security cultures with a
view to showing that their differences are not that grave to impede the creation of
a common European security culture with the involvement of Turkey. This article
concludes that there is need for a holistic approach to European security in order
to deal with today’s multi-layered, cross-border, and complex challenges, and, any
arrangement which excludes Turkey in this regard, would render European
security incomplete.
Books by Münevver Cebeci
Lexington Books, 2019
Deconstructing “Ideal Power Europe”: The EU and Arab Change criticizes the dominant discourse on... more Deconstructing “Ideal Power Europe”: The EU and Arab Change criticizes the dominant discourse on European foreign policy, which represents the EU as a force for good in world politics. Using a poststructuralist approach, it deconstructs the EU’s representation as “an ideal power” through an analysis of European foreign policy on the Southern Mediterranean before and after the Arab uprisings. In this endeavor, it displaces three major discourses which construct the EU as “ideal”: the “postmodern and post-sovereign EU”, “the EU as a model/a virtuous example”, and, “the EU as a normative power” discourses. The major argument of the book is that the “ideal power Europe” meta-narrative is especially produced and reproduced in the EU’s approach towards the Southern Mediterranean, and, it manifests itself through the rhetoric of “responsibility” and “universality” in the aftermath of the Arab uprisings. The book also provides an analysis of how the “ideal power Europe” meta-narrative feeds into and legitimizes European governmentality in the world, in general, and, in the case of the Southern Mediterranean after the Arab uprisings, in particular. Arguing that the depiction of the EU as postmodern/post-sovereign, as a model/an exemplar, and as a normative power pertains to the representation of a “regulatory ideal”, it elucidates how the EU pursues hegemonic practices in the Southern Mediterranean. It further manifests how the EU’s governmentality is marked by a securitized, depoliticizing, and technocratic approach which feeds into and gets legitimized by the dominant discourse on European foreign policy; reproducing the EU’s “ideal” identity vis-à-vis its “imperfect” Arab other.
Issues in E.U. and U.S. Foreign Policy, edited by Münevver Cebeci, aims at analyzing the percepti... more Issues in E.U. and U.S. Foreign Policy, edited by Münevver Cebeci, aims at analyzing the perceptions, interests, and policies of the EU and the US on various international issues. It portrays their convergences and divergences, and reflects on their interplay. The book has a geographical focus rather than a thematic one; however, some themes such as weapons of mass destruction, dual use technology transfer, energy security, and democratization, are unavoidable within their respective geographical contexts. For example, the authors inquire into the case of Iran with a special focus on nuclear proliferation; they investigate Russia with a significant emphasis on energy security; Iraq is examined with a discussion on the withdrawal of occupation troops; and, finally, the authors address the case of China with a debate on dual use technology transfer.
Book Chapters by Münevver Cebeci
Published in: "Turkey and Transatlantic Relations", ed.s Sasha Toperich and Aylin Ünver Noi, (Was... more Published in: "Turkey and Transatlantic Relations", ed.s Sasha Toperich and Aylin Ünver Noi, (Washington: Center for Transatlantic Relations
The Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies,
Johns Hopkins University, 2017) - ISBN: 978-0-9907721-2-5
The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) is a cooperative and comprehensive security organization, and Turkey is one of its founding participants. This chapter analyzes the relations between Turkey and the OSCE, arguing that Turkey's understanding of comprehensive security and multilateralism are compatible with the OSCE's approach to world politics, and the two entities are well-positioned to tackle today's international challenges. The chapter first scrutinizes the OSCE's role in world politics, as a comprehensive cooperative security organization that focuses on political dialogue among its participating states and promotes peace, democracy, human rights, and the rule of law. Second, the chapter ref lects on Turkey-OSCE relations from the point of view of comprehensive security and multilateralism. Third, the chapter looks into the role of Turkey and the OSCE in the process of transition we are currently witnessing in global dynamics. The chapter concludes that Turkey's contributions to cooperative security in Europe within the OSCE framework are part of its multilateral approach to world politics and its comprehensive approach to security.
Book chapter, 2017, in Tobias Schumacher and Dimitris Bouris (eds) The Revised European Neighbour... more Book chapter, 2017, in Tobias Schumacher and Dimitris Bouris (eds) The Revised European Neighbourhood Policy, Hampshire and New York: Palgrave
Book chapter, 2016, in Aylin Ünver Noi and Sasha Toperich (eds) Challenges of Democracy in the E... more Book chapter, 2016, in Aylin Ünver Noi and Sasha Toperich (eds) Challenges of Democracy in the European Union and Its Neighbors, Washington DC: Johns Hopkins University SAIS-CTR.
Issues in EU and US foreign policy, Jan 1, 2011
The role of the community of foreign policy intellectuals and academics is very important for the... more The role of the community of foreign policy intellectuals and academics is very important for the practice of foreign policy. Instead of there being separate archipelagos in terms of culture, policy-making and research communities often share the same epistemic-...
Issues in EU and US foreign policy, Jan 1, 2011
The Middle East is a region riddled with conflicts, bad governance, authoritarian regimes, violen... more The Middle East is a region riddled with conflicts, bad governance, authoritarian regimes, violence, and economic and social grievances. Global challenges such as illegal immigration, illicit arms and drugs trafficking, proliferation of weapons of mass destruction ...
Issues in EU and US foreign policy, Jan 1, 2011
Page 326. 13 Reassessing EU and US Foreign Policy: The Lisbon Treaty, the Obama Administration, a... more Page 326. 13 Reassessing EU and US Foreign Policy: The Lisbon Treaty, the Obama Administration, and Beyond Münevver Cebeci Building on the debates presented in the previous chapters, this conclud-ing chapter puts ...
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Journal Articles by Münevver Cebeci
Abstract: This article aims at deconstructing the ideal power Europe meta-narrative produced and reproduced by European Union (EU) practitioners and European Studies Researchers through the case of Turkey. Its major argument is that the " ideal power Europe " meta-narrative that the EU practitioners and researchers have been constructing legitimize the EU's practice in its external action in general and in its relations with Turkey in particular.
partially explain the current situation in Turkey and the EU’s impact, and that an analysis based on counter-conduct, as produced by EU governmentality, may provide insight into a subtler dynamic at work in the country.
Keywords: European Union, Weapons of Mass Destruction terrorism, Non-Proliferation, counterterrorism, Chemical Biological Radiological and Nuclear (CBRN)
terrorism
Full text: http://www.coedat.nato.int/publication/datr/volumes/datr8.pdf
Anahtar Kelimeler: NATO-AB İşbirliği, Ortak Güvenlik ve Savunma Politikası (OGSP), Avrupacı ayrışma, Türkiye
The aim of this article is to evaluate the stalemate in NATO-EU cooperation and in the involvement of Turkey in the Common Security and Defence Policy. Its major argument is that there are two factors that deepen this stalemate. The first one is the Europeanist decoupling in NATO. The second one is that the Union tries to pursue the asymmetrical relationship that it has with Turkey within the framework of the country’s EU candidacy in the realm of NATO-EU relations. The article concludes that this stalemate should be resolved as soon as possible, nevertheless, it would not be reasonable to point to Turkey, only, for finding a solution to the problem.
Key Words: NATO-EU Cooperation, Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP), Europeanist decoupling, Turkey
cultures; however, their divergences are not greater than those among EU Member
States as well as those between the EU and its members. The article pursues this
argument by comparing and contrasting Turkey’s and the EU’s security cultures
through the employment of a constructivist ontology and the conceptual
frameworks of securitization and desecuritization. It first gives a conceptual
overview, defining the terms “security culture”, “holistic approach to security”
and “European security”. Then, it analyses Turkey’s and the EU’s security
cultures separately, looking into their processes of securitization and
desecuritization. Finally, it compares these two distinct security cultures with a
view to showing that their differences are not that grave to impede the creation of
a common European security culture with the involvement of Turkey. This article
concludes that there is need for a holistic approach to European security in order
to deal with today’s multi-layered, cross-border, and complex challenges, and, any
arrangement which excludes Turkey in this regard, would render European
security incomplete.
Books by Münevver Cebeci
Book Chapters by Münevver Cebeci
The Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies,
Johns Hopkins University, 2017) - ISBN: 978-0-9907721-2-5
The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) is a cooperative and comprehensive security organization, and Turkey is one of its founding participants. This chapter analyzes the relations between Turkey and the OSCE, arguing that Turkey's understanding of comprehensive security and multilateralism are compatible with the OSCE's approach to world politics, and the two entities are well-positioned to tackle today's international challenges. The chapter first scrutinizes the OSCE's role in world politics, as a comprehensive cooperative security organization that focuses on political dialogue among its participating states and promotes peace, democracy, human rights, and the rule of law. Second, the chapter ref lects on Turkey-OSCE relations from the point of view of comprehensive security and multilateralism. Third, the chapter looks into the role of Turkey and the OSCE in the process of transition we are currently witnessing in global dynamics. The chapter concludes that Turkey's contributions to cooperative security in Europe within the OSCE framework are part of its multilateral approach to world politics and its comprehensive approach to security.
Abstract: This article aims at deconstructing the ideal power Europe meta-narrative produced and reproduced by European Union (EU) practitioners and European Studies Researchers through the case of Turkey. Its major argument is that the " ideal power Europe " meta-narrative that the EU practitioners and researchers have been constructing legitimize the EU's practice in its external action in general and in its relations with Turkey in particular.
partially explain the current situation in Turkey and the EU’s impact, and that an analysis based on counter-conduct, as produced by EU governmentality, may provide insight into a subtler dynamic at work in the country.
Keywords: European Union, Weapons of Mass Destruction terrorism, Non-Proliferation, counterterrorism, Chemical Biological Radiological and Nuclear (CBRN)
terrorism
Full text: http://www.coedat.nato.int/publication/datr/volumes/datr8.pdf
Anahtar Kelimeler: NATO-AB İşbirliği, Ortak Güvenlik ve Savunma Politikası (OGSP), Avrupacı ayrışma, Türkiye
The aim of this article is to evaluate the stalemate in NATO-EU cooperation and in the involvement of Turkey in the Common Security and Defence Policy. Its major argument is that there are two factors that deepen this stalemate. The first one is the Europeanist decoupling in NATO. The second one is that the Union tries to pursue the asymmetrical relationship that it has with Turkey within the framework of the country’s EU candidacy in the realm of NATO-EU relations. The article concludes that this stalemate should be resolved as soon as possible, nevertheless, it would not be reasonable to point to Turkey, only, for finding a solution to the problem.
Key Words: NATO-EU Cooperation, Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP), Europeanist decoupling, Turkey
cultures; however, their divergences are not greater than those among EU Member
States as well as those between the EU and its members. The article pursues this
argument by comparing and contrasting Turkey’s and the EU’s security cultures
through the employment of a constructivist ontology and the conceptual
frameworks of securitization and desecuritization. It first gives a conceptual
overview, defining the terms “security culture”, “holistic approach to security”
and “European security”. Then, it analyses Turkey’s and the EU’s security
cultures separately, looking into their processes of securitization and
desecuritization. Finally, it compares these two distinct security cultures with a
view to showing that their differences are not that grave to impede the creation of
a common European security culture with the involvement of Turkey. This article
concludes that there is need for a holistic approach to European security in order
to deal with today’s multi-layered, cross-border, and complex challenges, and, any
arrangement which excludes Turkey in this regard, would render European
security incomplete.
The Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies,
Johns Hopkins University, 2017) - ISBN: 978-0-9907721-2-5
The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) is a cooperative and comprehensive security organization, and Turkey is one of its founding participants. This chapter analyzes the relations between Turkey and the OSCE, arguing that Turkey's understanding of comprehensive security and multilateralism are compatible with the OSCE's approach to world politics, and the two entities are well-positioned to tackle today's international challenges. The chapter first scrutinizes the OSCE's role in world politics, as a comprehensive cooperative security organization that focuses on political dialogue among its participating states and promotes peace, democracy, human rights, and the rule of law. Second, the chapter ref lects on Turkey-OSCE relations from the point of view of comprehensive security and multilateralism. Third, the chapter looks into the role of Turkey and the OSCE in the process of transition we are currently witnessing in global dynamics. The chapter concludes that Turkey's contributions to cooperative security in Europe within the OSCE framework are part of its multilateral approach to world politics and its comprehensive approach to security.
This chapter starts with an overview of the constructivist literature on European identity. Then, it explores the complex relationship between collective identity and the multiple selves which constitute it. Linking this complex relationship to the study of European identity, it scrutinizes how European identity and national identities of the EU Member States are conceptualized in constructivist accounts. It further looks into critical constructivist theorizing about the construction of identity through practices of differentiation – i.e. the construction of the self against its others – and how European identity is defined against its various others such as the Russian and Turkish ones. Finally, this chapter provides a detailed analysis of the link between identity and foreign policy and it attempts to show how the critical/poststructuralist constructivist frameworks help better explain the production and reproduction of European identity through practices of foreign policy. This chapter concludes that the major contribution of European identity to constructivist theory is that it forces researchers to think in multidimensional ways and in a more critical manner in order to better understand and reflect on the pluralistic, cross-cutting, multilevel and much contested nature of such an identity.
Consider the everyday needs of the locals
more
Engage the locals in a more equal dialogue
Better assess the socio-economic, cultural
and political dynamics of recipient societies
Avoid “one-size-fits-all” approach and
imposing European best practices which do
not match the reality on the ground
Avoid offering technical and economic
solutions to political problems
its own identity (as peaceful, post-modern, etc.) in a specific way and designs and legitimizes its policies through such rhetoric. We will fulfil this task by inquiring into the co-constitutive relationship between EU discourse and its practices. This paper provides the detailed framework for such analysis, encouraging our partners to inquire into the argument that the EU pursues a securitized, depoliticizing and technocratic approach towards the Mediterranean.
identities and constructs the ideal European self against its imperfect Southern Mediterranean others. It also claims that the EU’s approach towards the Mediterranean is rather securitized, depoliticizing and technocratic. The report first looks into the shifts in the EU’s construction of the Mediterranean in terms of its region-building and boundary-drawing exercises. Second, it analyses how the EU securitizes the Mediterranean space and how this becomes an identityconstruction
exercise. Third, it inquires into the interplay between the EU’s norms and interests on the one hand and the European and Mediterranean identities that it constructs on the other. Finally, it attempts to demonstrate how the EU’s technocratic and depoliticizing policies on the Southern Mediterranean produce and reproduce subject and objects.
Abstract: Today’s Europe is mainly founded on an idealisation of itss historical self and its normative aspirations for the future. The EU’s construction as a successful peace project (its past) and the emphasis on the EU’s ‘aspirations’ (its future) mark the EU’s role in peacebuilding today. This paper looks into the interplay between the EU’s three temporal selves (past, present and future) in order to reveal how the EU’s past (peaceful integration) and future (normative aspirations) selves feed into the construction of its current self as an international actor and empower it to pursue its peacebuilding activities, especially in its neighbourhood. Its major argument is that the discourse of successful peaceful European integration (which is used to construct the EU’s past self) and the rhetoric on the Union’s normative aspirations about peacebuilding (which is employed to represent its future self) help constitute its present identity and legitimize its practices (liberal peacebuilding) today. The paper thus makes a second reading of the EU’s current peacebuilding efforts and tries to reveal the Union’s governmentality in this regard – the technologies and security apparatuses that it employs in order to change the behaviour of the receiving societies, and the knowledges (re)produced to legitimize them. It also looks into how the three temporal selves of the EU are produced and reproduced as ‘ideal’ and how the EU is empowered as an actor through such governmentality.
Abstract: This paper argues that there is a dominant and privileged literature in European Studies, which produces and reproduces the narrative of a developed/civilised/peaceful Europe in the face of its underdeveloped/uncivilised/conflictual others. The dominant variant of European Studies constructs the EU as a specific type of power (especially as a normative power) and tends to convey an ideal image about it. This is done so through specific representations of the EU's past (a project of peaceful integration) and its future (normative aspirations). This paper attempts to deconstruct such dominant/privileged European Studies texts through a second reading of their representations of the Union’s three temporal selves: past, present and future. It looks into how the representations of the EU’s past and its future legitimize its present/current self and its acts; silencing its other (critical) representations. It also seeks to portray how the dominant literature helps the creation of the EU's "imperfect" others and legitimizes the discourses and practices that mark the distinction between the ideal European self and its imperfect others. This paper sees such practices as epistemic violence and offers ways to deconstruct the privileged narratives on the Union.