From Brussels, with love? A comparative institutional study of values and principles in the foreign policy of compound democracies

The European Union (EU) and the U.S. can be both conceived as compound democracies. Yet, while the U.S. is generally understood as a hegemonic power in international relations, able to promote its values and principles in a consistent manner, the EU is often criticized for its inconsistencies. In order to understand whether and to which extent the EU is able to promote through its external action the values and principles enshrined in the Lisbon Treaty, this chapter offers a comparative study of the EU and the U.S. foreign policy-making. What emerges is that the inconsistent application of EU values and principles generally derives from a dispersion of decision-making powers both horizontally and vertically.