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EU External Relations 03: External Perceptions & EU-Africa Relations
Time:
Tuesday, 03/Sept/2024:
9:30am - 11:00am
Presentations
External Perceptions of the EU in Israel – The Role of Norms and Culture
Hila Zahavi1,2, Gal Arieli2
1Open University of Israel; 2Ben-Gurion University of the Negev
This article examines the role of norms and culture in perceptions of the EU. Conceptually, it offers a distinction between the image of the EU as a normative actor and attitudes toward one’s country’s relations with the EU. It also explores whether the Eurovision Song Contest, a cultural event which symbolizes the cultural understanding of contemporary Europe, is related to perceptions of the EU. Empirically, it uses a public opinion survey (N=1050) following Israel’s hosting of the Eurovision Song Contest in 2019. The findings indicate that Israelis distinguish between the image of the EU as an entity with positive features and their attitudes toward Israel’s connections with the EU.
We Want Democracy, and we Want it – Without Help? African Citizens Support for EU Democracy Support
Christine Hackenesch, Julia Leininger, Karina Mross, Daniel Nowack, Armin von Schiller
German Institute of Development and Sustainability, Germany
Do African citizens support European democracy promotion and does China's presence undermine or enhance support for external democracy promotion? Quantitative and qualitative research on external democracy promotion has analysed factors that influence the EU’s choice of democracy support instruments and its effectiveness. Whether democracy support is also viewed as legitimate by the concerned populations remains an open question. Empirically, this question has become more relevant nowadays because of the simultaneity of increasing global (geopolitical) competition of political regime types and a growing loss of normative credibility of Western actors. According to Afrobarometer, more than 70 per cent of African citizens’ view democracy as the most preferred political regime for their country. At the same time, whether external actors should or should not use political conditionality as one possible instrument to support democracy is a highly contested issue. In 2021 about 45% of respondents in 36 African countries view political conditionality generally positively, whereas 55% think that external actors should not attach political conditions to their loans or development assistance. Using original data collected in 2024 through representative surveys with 1200 respondents each in six African countries – including both electoral democracies and autocracies – this paper investigates the factors that influence African citizens’ perceptions of EU democracy support.
