Hard Questions About Soft Power

Soft power played a decisive role during the recent people’s uprisings in North Africa, where the EU was ineffective as a normative actor compared to the authoritarian regimes. Issues of identity, norms, and values have thus become even more important in relations between the EU and its neighbors. Russia discovered that soft power is a useful instrument for control and influence over its neighbors. The Kremlin picked up some of its rhetorical tricks in Brussels.