The Area of Freedom, Security and Justice and the External Effect

The Area of Freedom, Security and Justice (AFSJ) is one of the most dynamic EU policy areas at present. With the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty in 2009, the AFSJ was brought into the core of the Union project. However, with the Lisbon Treaty changes and thereby the creation of an AFSJ sphere at the supranational level, it has become increasingly difficult to clearly gauge the external dimension of EU action in this area. In other words, the external impact of Union action with regard to –for example – the fight against terrorism has a significant constitutional feature to it. Security offers a particularly instructive example of where the internal and external appears increasingly blurred. Indeed, it is proclaimed in Article 67 TFEU that the Union shall not only constitute an AFSJ as such (as promised by title V of the TFEU), but that it shall also endeavor to ensure a high level of security. Immigration policy, fight against terrorism, drug trafficking and the growing area of cyber space criminality all offer examples of where it seems especially difficult to sharply distinguish between internal and external EU action.

The purpose of this paper is to look at the expressive function of the AFSJ with regard to its interaction with the external sphere and what it tells us about the relationship between the internal and external in the context of the EU as a global actor and the AFSJ project.