The Nordic Balance Revisited: Differentiation and the Foreign Policy Repertoires of the Nordic States
Nordic governments frequently broadcast their ambition to do more together on the international stage. The five Nordic states (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Sweden and Norway) also share many basic goals as foreign policy actors, including a steadfast and vocal commitment to safeguarding the ‘rules-bas...
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:6d73b4e35a4c40789ea6b4a3e9a41590 2023-05-15T16:51:22+02:00 The Nordic Balance Revisited: Differentiation and the Foreign Policy Repertoires of the Nordic States Kristin Haugevik Ole Jacob Sending 2020-11-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.17645/pag.v8i4.3380 https://doaj.org/article/6d73b4e35a4c40789ea6b4a3e9a41590 EN eng Cogitatio https://www.cogitatiopress.com/politicsandgovernance/article/view/3380 https://doaj.org/toc/2183-2463 2183-2463 doi:10.17645/pag.v8i4.3380 https://doaj.org/article/6d73b4e35a4c40789ea6b4a3e9a41590 Politics and Governance, Vol 8, Iss 4, Pp 110-119 (2020) cooperation foreign policy identity nordic region repertoires Political science (General) JA1-92 article 2020 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.17645/pag.v8i4.3380 2022-12-31T00:00:45Z Nordic governments frequently broadcast their ambition to do more together on the international stage. The five Nordic states (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Sweden and Norway) also share many basic goals as foreign policy actors, including a steadfast and vocal commitment to safeguarding the ‘rules-based international order.’ Why then, do we not see more organized Nordic foreign policy collaboration, for example in the form of a joint ‘grand strategy’ on core foreign policy issues, or in relation to great powers and international organizations? In this article, we draw on Charles Tilly’s concept of ‘repertoires’ to address the discrepancy between ambitions and developments in Nordic foreign policy cooperation, highlighting how the bundles of policy instruments—repertoires—that each Nordic state has developed over time take on an identity-defining quality. We argue that the Nordic states have invested in and become attached to their foreign policy differences, niches, and ‘brands.’ On the international scene, and especially when interacting with significant other states, they tend not only to stick to what they know how to do and are accustomed to doing but also to promote their national rather than their Nordic profile. While Nordic cooperation forms part of all the five states’ foreign policy repertoire in specific policy areas, these are marginal compared to the distinctive repertoires on which each Nordic state rely in relation to more powerful states. It is therefore unlikely that we will see a ‘common order’ among the Nordic states in the foreign policy domain in the near future. Article in Journal/Newspaper Iceland Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Norway Politics and Governance 8 4 110 119 |
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Open Polar |
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Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
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ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
cooperation foreign policy identity nordic region repertoires Political science (General) JA1-92 |
spellingShingle |
cooperation foreign policy identity nordic region repertoires Political science (General) JA1-92 Kristin Haugevik Ole Jacob Sending The Nordic Balance Revisited: Differentiation and the Foreign Policy Repertoires of the Nordic States |
topic_facet |
cooperation foreign policy identity nordic region repertoires Political science (General) JA1-92 |
description |
Nordic governments frequently broadcast their ambition to do more together on the international stage. The five Nordic states (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Sweden and Norway) also share many basic goals as foreign policy actors, including a steadfast and vocal commitment to safeguarding the ‘rules-based international order.’ Why then, do we not see more organized Nordic foreign policy collaboration, for example in the form of a joint ‘grand strategy’ on core foreign policy issues, or in relation to great powers and international organizations? In this article, we draw on Charles Tilly’s concept of ‘repertoires’ to address the discrepancy between ambitions and developments in Nordic foreign policy cooperation, highlighting how the bundles of policy instruments—repertoires—that each Nordic state has developed over time take on an identity-defining quality. We argue that the Nordic states have invested in and become attached to their foreign policy differences, niches, and ‘brands.’ On the international scene, and especially when interacting with significant other states, they tend not only to stick to what they know how to do and are accustomed to doing but also to promote their national rather than their Nordic profile. While Nordic cooperation forms part of all the five states’ foreign policy repertoire in specific policy areas, these are marginal compared to the distinctive repertoires on which each Nordic state rely in relation to more powerful states. It is therefore unlikely that we will see a ‘common order’ among the Nordic states in the foreign policy domain in the near future. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Kristin Haugevik Ole Jacob Sending |
author_facet |
Kristin Haugevik Ole Jacob Sending |
author_sort |
Kristin Haugevik |
title |
The Nordic Balance Revisited: Differentiation and the Foreign Policy Repertoires of the Nordic States |
title_short |
The Nordic Balance Revisited: Differentiation and the Foreign Policy Repertoires of the Nordic States |
title_full |
The Nordic Balance Revisited: Differentiation and the Foreign Policy Repertoires of the Nordic States |
title_fullStr |
The Nordic Balance Revisited: Differentiation and the Foreign Policy Repertoires of the Nordic States |
title_full_unstemmed |
The Nordic Balance Revisited: Differentiation and the Foreign Policy Repertoires of the Nordic States |
title_sort |
nordic balance revisited: differentiation and the foreign policy repertoires of the nordic states |
publisher |
Cogitatio |
publishDate |
2020 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.17645/pag.v8i4.3380 https://doaj.org/article/6d73b4e35a4c40789ea6b4a3e9a41590 |
geographic |
Norway |
geographic_facet |
Norway |
genre |
Iceland |
genre_facet |
Iceland |
op_source |
Politics and Governance, Vol 8, Iss 4, Pp 110-119 (2020) |
op_relation |
https://www.cogitatiopress.com/politicsandgovernance/article/view/3380 https://doaj.org/toc/2183-2463 2183-2463 doi:10.17645/pag.v8i4.3380 https://doaj.org/article/6d73b4e35a4c40789ea6b4a3e9a41590 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.17645/pag.v8i4.3380 |
container_title |
Politics and Governance |
container_volume |
8 |
container_issue |
4 |
container_start_page |
110 |
op_container_end_page |
119 |
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1766041477226430464 |