The European Union as a Global Counter-Terrorism Actor.

• Author: Turpcu, Murat

The European Union as a Global Counter-Terrorism Actor

By Christian Kauner, Alex MacKenzie, and Sarah Leonard

Edward Elgar Publications, 2022, 192 pages, [pounds sterling]72.00, ISBN: 9781782548270

The European Union as a Global Counter-Terrorism Actor is the third book in a series on "European Security and Justice Critiques" written by Christian Kauner, Alex MacKenzie, and Sarah Leonard. The book consists of an introduction and seven chapters. This book claims to contribute to the academic literature in two ways, one of which is namely the topic of EU counter-terrorism and the other is EU integration and actorness (p. 13). The book analyses the EU's collective securitization of terrorism after September 11 through a model improved by Sperling and Webber (p. 13). Furthermore, a version of Brattberg and Rhinards' actorness criteria--context, coherence, and capability--is applied referring to the "actor" term in the title of the book. In the following chapters, counter-terrorism in Transatlantic, South Asian, Iraqi and Syrian relationships are examined. This study is not only primarily relevant to students, but also to academics in the field of law, politics, international relations, sociology, and history.

This study reveals how much the EU has developed as a counter-terrorism actor since 9/11 and examines the reasons for this growth. The explanations are based on many theories of international relations, from realism to liberalism, and help in discussing and understanding the subject at the conceptual level. This ensures that the reader gains a deep and lasting understanding of the subject.

The introduction starts at the theoretical plane and then moves to the empirical. The legal journey of the EU counter-terrorism chronology is clearly laid out. Developments and references are connected to each other and they are appropriate, allowing the reader to understand the arguments put forward in the book. However, some determinations such as the EU's heavy engagement with the U.S. and lack of a common threat perception by member states jeopardize the arguments of the book.

Two main stages of chapter one are worth mentioning. The first one analyses the EU involvement in the area of counter-terrorism by asking how and why. The collective securitization framework is the tool for determining the situation. The second stage assesses the EU as a counter-terrorism actor on the global stage simply using the actorness analytical framework. A significant...