Diplomacy without a state: the external delegations of the European Commission

The external delegations of the European Commission are unique institutions in the sense that they are embassies without a state. This article first assesses the particularity of their situation owing to unusual political, functional and structural handicaps. This is followed by a review of their actions which are split between the desire to assert their legitimacy as autonomous embassies and the necessity of taking part in the more global frame of a developing European foreign policy. Finally, an analysis is provided of the way the delegations have developed a form of 'consumer-oriented' diplomacy. Throughout the article, the delegations emerge as institutions that reflect the evolution of the European institutional equilibrium, the modernization of administrations, and the transformation of diplomatic practice on the eve of the twenty-first century.