MEDLARE ELLER RÅDGIVARE?

Abstract

This thesis examines whether the European Commission played a significant or limited role in the EU's sanctions against Russia after the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The thesis analyzes the theoretical debate between Liberal Intergovernmentalism and Neofunctionalism, developing two ideal types. According to the first one, the Liberal Intergovernmentalist ideal type, the Commission has a limited formal role as defined in the European treaties. Meanwhile, the Neofunctionalist ideal type argues that the Commission is an independent organization that tries to use its formal and informal power to influence the decisions of member states. The thesis shows that the Commission played an active role in several stages of the sanctioning process, and sometimes even more than what one would expect in a purely intergovernmentalist system. Therefore, the conclusion is that the Neofunctionalist ideal type best explains the Commission's actions during the sanctions against Russia in 2022.