International Negotiation in the Council of the European Union

Abstract

Negotiation is an important part of international relations when it covers
the interaction among the states as its actors. Basically, we distinguish
distributive bargaining and integrative problem-solving as two main
approaches (or sets of strategies) in negotiation. Problem-solving seems to
be more valuable in recognizing more effective solutions, but at the same
time it is harder to adopt it. The main goal of this article is to find out which
approach is typical for negotiation between member states of the European
Union. By identifying the key determinants (level of politicization, nature of
the question under negotiation, influence of sub-national and
supranational actors, and interest cleavage) for the decision on the
selection of an appropriate strategy, we argue that the context of the EU
negotiation enables the identification of integrative solutions in a sufficient
way.