著者

粕谷 真司

出版者

一般財団法人 日本国際政治学会

雑誌

国際政治 (ISSN:04542215)

巻号頁・発行日

vol.2020, no.199, pp.199_65-199_80, 2020-03-30 (Released:2020-04-16)

参考文献数

82

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This article explores the British initiative to improve European Political Cooperation (EPC) in the early years of the Thatcher government. EPC was a framework for foreign policy cooperation among the member states of the European Community (EC) established in 1970. Despite Margaret Thatcher’s reputation as pro-American and opposition to European federalism, Britain played an active role in shaping EPC’s evolution. In October 1980, Lord Carrington, British Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, proposed EPC’s improvement. After a year of negotiation, the Foreign Ministers of the Ten adopted the London Report in October 1981. The London Report codified existing arrangements in EPC. It also contained a wide range of improvements such as EPC’s full association with the European Commission and the establishment of a crisis procedure.This article demonstrates that the British initiative had two objectives. First, Britain needed a more effective EPC in order to pursue British and wider Western interests. Britain, under Carrington’s leadership, attempted to launch European initiatives in international problems such as the Arab-Israeli conflict and the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. In Britain’s view, these initiatives were intended to complement US diplomatic actions that would serve not only British but also Western interests in general. Therefore, Britain felt the need to improve EPC, as it was neither strong nor stable enough framework to conduct major foreign policy initiatives.Second, Britain expected to overcome its isolation in European integration process by showing its constructiveness in EPC. Since the mid-1970s, Britain had been isolated within the EC as a result of a renegotiation of its EC membership and its absence from the European Monetary System. In the early years of the Thatcher government, acrimonious disputes over the British budgetary contribution led to Britain’s further isolation. By contributing to the development of EPC, Britain tried to prove its “Europeanness” and overcome its isolation in European integration process.This article also reveals that Britain fell into a difficult situation in the course of its initiative. In January 1981, West German Foreign Minister Hans-Dietrich Genscher launched a major initiative to create a “European Union” through the establishment of “Common Foreign Policy”. The British government feared that support for Genscher’s initiative could be criticized by anti-marketeers in Conservative supporters. Also, Britain worried that Genscher’s initiative could lead to the loss of a flexible character of EPC and lessen freedom in the conduct of British foreign policy. As a result, Britain stopped overtly displaying its “Europeanness”. While Britain contributed to the making of the London Report, it failed to overcome its isolation in European integration through the initiative.