The paper presents the findings of research conducted as part of the EU-FP7 project CASCADE (‘Exploring the Security-Democracy Nexus in the Caucasus’). Drawing upon Elgström and Smith (2006), it links role theories and the analysis of EU external action (in particular, Normative Power Europe) with the view to analysing the way in which the EU is perceived in its Eastern neighbourhood, more specifically in the South Caucasus .
The paper examines perceptions of the European Union in relation to three roles it is expected to play in the South Caucasus: an exporter of democratic values, a model for economic modernisation, and a mediator in conflict resolution. The paper seeks to map convergence and divergence between the EU’s own narratives and self-perceptions, on the one hand, and Caucasian images of the EU and its policies, on the other hand. In addition, the paper compares and connects the ways in which the EU perceives itself and is perceived by Caucasian actors with the perceptions of another major external actor in the Caucasus – the Russian Federation. As the paper argues, perceptions of the EU are filtered by both domestic expectations vis-à-vis the Union and domestic images of Russia’s role, especially in light of developments in the wider region (e.g. the conflict in Ukraine).
The paper draws upon the analysis of existing surveys on perceptions of the EU and on qualitative research (discourse analysis, in-depth interviews and focus groups) conducted in the three South Caucasus countries (Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia) and in two de facto States (Abkhazia and Nagorno-Karabakh) with different actors categories (e.g. political elites, civil servants, businesses, civil society organisations, youth).
