The EU’s growing role in the external AFSJ domain: factors, framework and forms of action

External action has been of growing importance for the Union’s Area of Freedom, Security and Justice (AFSJ) and accounted in 2011 already for over 19% of all texts adopted by the Justice and Home Affairs Council. AFSJ related external action has also added a new dimension to previously existing fields of EU external relations. This article first considers the internal and external factors which have influenced the development the external side of the AFSJ and the impact of the post-Lisbon legal and institutional framework, including the special context created by the “opt-outs” and coherence problems within this framework. It then provides a survey and analysis of the main forms of EU action in this domain (strategy formulation, cooperation with third countries, capacity-building and cooperation with and within international organisations) before assessing – in the conclusions – the implications of this external dimension for both the EU and the Member States and its future developments prospects.