What is it about?
Parliaments are democratically elected institutions focused on representing domestic constituencies, making domestic laws and controlling their national governments. We show that parliaments increasingly act beyond the nation state and act in international and regional forums where important policies and decisions are made. They complement the foreign policy of the executive by acting as diplomatic institutions themselves.
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Why is it important?
The growing action of parliament in the sphere of diplomacy is important because parliamentarians can significantly contribute: to the creation of the public opinion on foreign policy issues; conflict resolution through mediation where executive channels have been exhausted; the promotion of democratic governance and human rights around the world; exchanging information and views on burning global problems (e.g. climate change and terrorism) but also regional or domestic problems that have a wider impact.
Perspectives
This article provides a well-illustrated overview of the growing international role of parliamentary bodies (e.g. domestic legislatures, parliamentary assemblies, legislative networks, joint parliamentary committees) and parliamentarians themselves. It assesses the nature, forms and objectives of the diplomatic action of parliaments and parliamentarians in the globalised world.
Dr Davor Jancic
Universiteit van Amsterdam
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Introduction The Rise of Parliamentary Diplomacy in International Politics, The Hague Journal of Diplomacy, March 2016, Brill,
DOI: 10.1163/1871191x-12341344.
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Resources
Special Issue "Parliamentary Diplomacy Uncovered: European and Global Perspectives" (Hague Journal of Diplomacy, 2016)
This publication contains numerous articles on EU, regional and domestic case studies of parliamentary diplomacy (e.g. European Parliament, China, US, Turkey, South and South and South-East Asia, the Mediterranean, Africa, South-East Europe)
"The Role of the European Parliament and the US Congress in Shaping Transatlantic Relations: TTIP, NSA Surveillance and CIA Renditions" (Journal of Common Market Studies 2016)
The article argues that the European Parliament and the US Congress aim not only to influence their executive branches but also to act autonomously in the transnational arena through parliamentary diplomacy. They seek to secure concessions both formally by scrutinizing transatlantic international agreements (TTIP), as well as informally by exposing injustices and diplomatic misconduct through human rights advocacy and institutional pressure (NSA surveillance and CIA renditions).
"Transatlantic Regulatory Interdependence, Law and Governance: The Evolving Roles of the EU and US Legislatures" (Cambridge Yearbook of European Legal Studies, 2015)
The analysis conducts two groups of case studies: (a) parliamentary involvement in the making of international agreements (TTIP and ACTA); and (b) legislation with extraterritorial effects (US Helms–Burton and Sarbanes–Oxley Acts). The article argues that the EP and Congress have so far frequently acted against the spirit of the strategic partnership and discusses whether an interparliamentary early warning mechanism could reduce frictions and increase the coherence of transatlantic lawmaking.
"Globalizing Representative Democracy: The Emergence of Multilayered International Parliamentarism" (Hastings International and Comparative Law Review, 2015)
The article carries out an in-depth study of EU-Brazil relations in the parliamentary sphere and examines the reaction of the Brazilian and supranational regional Latin American parliaments to the EU Returns Directive. The analysis shows that the traditional, inward-looking role of parliaments is gradually changing under the pressure of transnational policy challenges. This accentuates parliaments' deliberative functions and creates new avenues for parliamentary input in international affairs.
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