The European Green Deal as an Instrument of Geopolitical Power: Regulatory Tensions and Challenges for the Global South (2020-2030)

Abstract

This article analyzes the European Green Deal (EGD) as an international governance initiative seeking to reshape the frameworks guiding trade and diplomatic action. The objective is to examine the external dimension of the EGD, evaluating how instruments such as the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) impact international actors and climate governance. The central hypothesis posits that the EGD operates as an instrument of hybrid power that reconfigures global governance. Far from being solely an environmental strategy, the EGD projects a normative hegemony (“Brussels Effect”) that, by imposing standards like the CBAM, transforms climate cooperation into an arena of geoeconomic competition, exacerbating structural asymmetries and diplomatic tensions with the Global South. The adopted methodology is qualitative, employing a case study design based on a documentary review of primary sources (EU and World Trade Organization documents) and secondary sources (academic literature, think tank reports). The research results demonstrate that the EGD is generating a “Brussels Effect” in sustainability policy, compelling third countries to adapt their regulatory standards regarding climate matters. However, this unilateral strategy also faces strong accusations of “green protectionism,” exacerbating tensions with key trading partners and developing nations, who perceive it as an imposition undermining the principle of Common but Differentiated Responsibilities. It is evident that, without adequate financial and technological support mechanisms, these measures threaten to hinder the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the Global South. It is concluded that the EGD acts as an instrument of geopolitical power that, beyond its environmental dimension, reconfigures global governance toward geoeconomic competition, exacerbating asymmetries with the Global South and fragmenting the international climate regime.