This article aims to examine how the European Union (EU) exercises the concept of resilience to achieve its strategic foreign policy goals. Specifically, the case of the Eastern Partnership (EaP) is covered. The article proceeds as follows. First, the origins and definition of resilience are explored to provide the background for further reasoning. Second, the connections between the concept of resilience and the geoeconomic strategy of the EU are examined. Subsequently, Russia’s geoeconomic approach is outlined to provide a counterexample and demonstrate the distinctiveness of the EU’s policy. Finally, the approaches are compared emphasising the structural process of introduction of policy instruments, as well as their implications for the strengths and weaknesses of the EU as a geoeconomic power vis-à-vis Russia.
THE EUROPEAN CONCEPT OF RESILIENCE AS A TOOL OF GEOECONOMIC COMPETITION WITH RUSSIA
