The EU and nuclear non-proliferation: Soft power and the bomb?

In the last 20 years the European Union has sought to play a larger role in international efforts to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons. Its member states have advanced common EU positions in the main global nonproliferation frameworks; it is a leading provider of technical and financial assistance to other states and multilateral organisations in support of nonproliferation; and it has used its political and economic leverage to support non-proliferation (in particular, in relation to Iran). The EU’s non-proliferation strategy reflects a primarily soft or normative power approach, emphasising support for multilateral institutions and international norms. The EU’s soft power is limited, however, by continuing differences between its member states in relation to nuclear weapons and the difficulty of persuading other states to buy in to the EU’s approach.