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Is Europe a Risk Averse Actor?

This article makes the hypothesis that the European Union (EU) is a political actor whose identity and strategy on the international field are based on a strong aversion towards risk. In order to follow this hypothesis, we will define the exact meaning of a Risk Averse Power (RAP). Roughly speaking, an RAP can be defined as an international actor that defines and responds to the political stakes of a given identified risk in terms of a will to reduce its uncertainties and uncontrollable effects. Then, in the absence of any existing composite index, we propose five criteria for measuring this risk aversion: job loss risk, biotechnology risks, climate change risk, financial risks, and risk of war. In the next section, we attempt to explain why Europe is risk averse, through various factors: Europe’s non-state construction, the existence of a deliberative European political space, Europe’s social model aiming towards market risk minimization, and, finally, the end of the need for an Empire. Finally, we determine the broader implications of risk aversion for Europe as a global actor.