Giselle Bosse (G.I.)

 

Prof. Dr. Giselle Bosse is a Full Professor and holds a personal chair in EU External Democracy Support, as well as the Jean Monnet Chair in EU Foreign Policy and International Relations at the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, Maastricht University. She is also a Fellow at the European Democracy Hub in Brussels.

Her research examines EU relations with Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine, emphasising the EU's democracy support initiatives through the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) and the Eastern Partnership (EaP), and EU policies to counter democratic backsliding and autocratisation in EaP countries. Bosse’s research also addresses EU enlargement, with a focus on the integration pathways for Ukraine, Moldova, and Georgia. Her studies emphasise the role and functioning of democratic institutions and the rule of law within these accession countries, while also investigating how citizens and civil soceity from both EU member states and accession countries engage in the enlargement process.

More broadly, Bosse's work focuses on the role of values in the EU's foreign policy and international relations, including recent publications on how norms- and rights- based justifications influenced the EU's response to Russia's war against Ukraine (Bosse 2022, 2023).

Bosse has received several major research grants, including a VENI Grant from the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO) for her work on EU relations with autocratic regimes (2013-2016) and an ASPASIA Research Grant on non-state actors in EU foreign policy (2018-2022). She currently leads work packages for EU Horizon projects EMBRACE (2022-2025) and INVIGORATE (2024-2027), which address barriers to democratisation in the EU's neighbourhood.

Bosse has widely published her research in many international journals and books, inter alia in the Journal of Common Market Studies, Geopolitics, Europe-Asia Studies, Cooperation and Conflict and with Manchester University Press. She frequently presents her work at leading think tanks in Europe, and has contributed to several commissioned studies for EU institutions. She regularly appears as an expert commentator in the media, including NPO1, Euronews, Deutsche Welle, AFP, Libération or L1 Limburg. 

She is co-coordinator of the EmergEU Jean Monnet Centre at the Centre for European Research in Maastricht (CERiM), Research Associate at the Martens Centre in Brussels, and visiting professor at the College of Europe (Bruges) and the Diplomatic School of Armenia (Yerevan). Between 2020-2022, she served as Vice Dean Education at the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences and from 2016-2020 she was Programme Director of the Research Master European Studies. She has also been visiting fellow at the Brussels School of International Studies (BSIS) and at the Center for European Policy Studies (CEPS), Brussels. Bosse holds an MA degree from the College of Europe (Natolin) and a PhD from Aberystwyth University. 

 

Publications

 

Edited Volumes 

  • 2024 EU, Security and The Eastern Partnership Resilient States versus Resilient Societies, Routledge (with A. Vieira and C. Kaunert).
  • 2023 Guest Editorial: Resilient states versus resilient societies? Whose security does the EU protect through the Eastern Partnership? Special Issue, Journal of Contemporary European Studies (with A. Vieira and C. Kaunert). Q1
  • 2013 Values vs. Security? The Choice for the EU and Its Neighbours, Manchester, Manchester University Press (with G. Noutcheva and K. Pomorska).
  • 2011 Guest Editorial: The Geopolitics of Energy Security in ‘Wider Europe’, Special Issue, Geopolitics, 16, 3 (with A. Schmidt-Felzmann). Q1

 

Refereed Articles 

  • 2025 Policy-Learning in EU Democracy Support:  Strategic adaptation and (un)learning in the EU’s response to authoritarian consolidation in Belarus, Democratization (accepted for publication, in production)
  • 2024 The EU's response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine: Invoking norms and values in times of fundamental rupture, Journal of Common Market Studies. DOI: 10.1111/jcms.13569. Q1
  • 2023 Introduction to Special Issue: Resilient states versus resilient societies? Whose security does the EU protect through the Eastern Partnership?, Journal of Contemporary European Studies, 31(4), 1048-1057 (with A. Vieira & C. Kaunert). DOI: 10.1080/14782804.2023.2241021. Q1
  • 2023 Resilient states vs. resilient societies? The ‘dark side’ of resilience narratives in EU relations with authoritarian regimes: a case study of Belarus, Journal of Contemporary European Studies, 31(4), 1058-1072 (with A. Vieira). DOI: 10.1080/14782804.2023.2211938  Q1
  • Mayer, N., Darebo, T. D., Fourie, E., & Bosse, G. (2023). Climate Variability and Development Interventions Influence Migration Aspirations and Capabilities of Project Beneficiaries in Southern Ethiopia. Migration and Development, 12 (1), 68-90. https://doi.org/10.1177/21632324231194762.
  • 2022 Values, rights, and changing interests: The EU’s response to the war against Ukraine and the responsibility to protect Europeans, Contemporary Security Policy, 43(3), 531-546. DOI: 10.1080/13523260.2022.2099713. Q1
  • 2022 Does the EU Have Moral Authority? A Communicative Action Perspective on Sanctions, Politics and Governance, 10(1), 16-25. DOI: https://doi.org/10.17645/pag.v10i1.4680. Q1
  • 2021 Authoritarian consolidation in Belarus: What role for the EU?, European View, 20(2), 201-210. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/17816858211061839
  • 2021 Persuading the giant? Explaining Eastern Partnership states’ unexpected negotiation success in relations with the European Union, International Negotiation, 27(2), 292-324 (with A. Vieira and M. Höpner). DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1163/15718069-bja10032 Q2
  • 2019 Ten years of the Eastern Partnership: What role for the EU as a promoter of democracy?, European View, 18(2): 1-23.
  • 2017 Talking Peace at the Edge of War: Local Civil Society Narratives and Reconciliation in Eastern Ukraine, Kyiv-Mohyla Law and Politics Journal, No. 3, 91-116 (with G. Bazilo).
  • 2017 EU normative performance: a critical theory perspective on the EU’s response to the massacre in Andijon, Uzbekistan. East European Politics, 3 (1), pp. 56-71. Q1
  • 2017 “Hard security” vs. “Big Business”? Explaining Romania’s and Bulgaria’s responses to the conflict in Ukraine, Studia Diplomatica, 86(5): 60-79 (with R. Hincu).
  • 2014 The Eastern Partnership and the Disintegration of Eastern Europe: The End of the Region-Building Project? European View, 13(1), 97-118.
  • 2012 The end of democratising Europe’s ‘last dictatorship’? Explaining paradigm shifts in the EU’s policy towards Belarus, Journal of Common Market Studies, 50(3), 367-384. Q1
  • 2011 The new guardians of security in Europe? EU Foreign Policy towards Libya and Belarus, Perspectives on European Politics and Society, 12(4), 440-461. Q1
  • 2011 The EU’s Geopolitical Vision of a European Energy Space: When ‘Gulliver’ meets ‘White Elephants’ and Verdi’s Babylonian King, Geopolitics, 16 (3), 512-535. Q1
  • 2011 Introduction: The Geopolitics of Energy Security in ‘Wider Europe’, Geopolitics, 16(3) (with A. Schmidt-Felzmann), 497-485. Q1
  • 2010 The EU’s relations with Moldova: Governance, Partnership or Ignorance?, Europe-Asia Studies, 62(8), 1291-1309. Q1
  • 2009 Changing Belarus? The Limits of EU Governance in Eastern Europe and the Promise of Partnership, Cooperation and Conflict, 44(2), 143-65 (with E. Korosteleva). Q1
  • 2009 The Values/Security Nexus: The Limits of EU Governance in Eastern Europe, Contemporary Politics, 15(2), 215-227. Q2
  • 2007 Values in the EU’s Neighbourhood Policy: Political Rhetoric or Reflection of a Coherent Policy?, European Political Economy Review, 7(1), 38-62.
  • 2006 Lost in Translation? Political Elites and the Interpretative Values Gap in European Neighbourhood Policies, Contemporary Politics, 2(12), 117-137 (with G. Bogutscaia and A. Schmidt-Felzmann). Q2

(Q1 - Journal ranks in first quartile in Political Science, International Relations or Area Studies)

 

Book Chapters 

  • 2025 Dutch-US Relations: Navigating Atlanticism Under Pressure, in: Keading, M., Pollak, J. and Schmidt, P. (Eds) The USA and the Future of Europe: Views from the Capitals, Cham, Springer Nature (with Lion Lehmbecker and Lia Spornraft).
  • 2024 Strict, fair, engaged.... and still without a vision? A view from the Netherlands on EU enlargement and its neighbourhood, in: Keading, M., Pollak, J. and Schmidt, P. (Eds) Enlargement and the Future of Europe: Views from the Capitals, Cham, Springer Nature.
  • 2024 Norm diffusion beyond the membership perspective: Does the EU (still) matter for democratic reform progress in the post-Soviet space? In: Fromage, D. (Ed) (Re-)defining Membership: Differentiation in and outside the European Union, Oxford, Oxford University Press.
  • 2020 Ukraine and the European Union, Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Politics, Oxford, Oxford University Press, June 2020.
  • 2018 EU normative performance: a critical theory perspective on the EU’s response to the massacre in Andijon, Uzbekistan. In Baltag, D., Papadimitriou, D. and Surubaru, N. C. (Eds) The European Union and Central and Eastern Europe: Assessing Performance, Routledge, pp. 98-121.
  • 2017 EU-Belarus Relations, in: Schumacher, T., Marchetti, A. and Demmelhuber, T. (Eds) The Routledge Handbook on the European Neighbourhood Policy, Abingdon/Oxon, Routledge, pp. 290-301.
  • 2016 Markets versus Morals? Assessing EU Arms Exports to Autocratic Regimes in its Closer and Wider Neighbourhood, in: Gstöhl, S. (Ed) The European Neighbourhood Policy in a Comparative Perspective, Abingdon/Oxon, Routledge, pp. 282-302.
  • 2016 The EU’s Eastern Partnership with Moldova: A ‘best case’ scenario for EU security community building?, in: Rieker, P. (Ed) External Governance as Security Community Building, London, Palgrave (with D. Baltag), pp. 49-78.
  • 2013 From ‘Villains’ to the New Guardians of Security in Europe? Paradigm Shifts in EU Foreign Policy towards Libya and Belarus, in: Kaunert, C. and Léonard, S. (Eds) European Security Governance and the European Neighbourhood after the Lisbon Treaty, London, Routledge, pp. 80-101.
  • 2013 European Union policy towards Belarus and Libya: old and new double standards?, in: Cierco, T.(Ed) The European Union Neighbourhood: Challenges and Opportunities, Abingdon/Oxon, Routledge, pp. 83-88.
  • 2013 Values versus security? Assessing the EU’s pragmatic engagement with Belarus in the Eastern Partnership Policy, in: G. Noutcheva, K.Pomorska and G. Bosse (Eds) The EU and its neighbours: Values vs. Security in European Foreign Policy, Manchester, Manchester University Press, pp. 122-138.
  • 2013 Introduction, in: G. Noutcheva, K. Pomorska and G. Bosse (Eds) The EU and its neighbours: Values vs. Security in European Foreign Policy, Manchester, Manchester University Press, pp. 1-24.
  • 2010 The EU’s Role in Georgia: Towards a Coherent Crisis Management Strategy?, in: A. Juncos and E. Gross (Eds) EU Conflict Prevention and Crisis Management: Institutions, Policies and Roles, London, Routledge, pp. 131-144.
  • 2008 Justifying the European Neighbourhood Policy Based on 'Shared Values': Can Rhetoric Match Reality?, in: E. Tulmets and L. Delcour (Eds) Pioneer Europe? EU Foreign Policy in the Neighbourhood, Baden-Baden, Nomos, pp. 43-54.
  • 2008 The EU's Neighbourhood Relations with Eastern Europe and Russia: Values, Interests and Future Challenges for EU Foreign Policy, in: B. Demirtas-Coskun and B. Balamir-Coskun (Eds) Neighbourhood Challenge: The European Union and Its Neighbours, United States, Universal Publishers, pp. 313-328.  

 

Policy Reports and Briefings 

 

MEDIA APPEARANCES (selection)

 

GUEST LECTURES AND KEYNOTE SPEECHES (selection)

  • 2021 Speech, EU-Belarus Relations, Policy Dialogue at European Policy Centre, Brussels, June.
  • 2021 Public speech, Protests in Belarus, United Nations Association, Maastricht, March.
  • 2020 Public speech, EU Democracy Promotion in Belarus, Leiden University, November.
  • 2019 Opening speech, European Commission Eastern Partnership Conference: Promoting Common Values through Education and Culture, Tbilisi, June.

 

RESEARCH GRANTS (selection):

  1. Embracing Change: Overcoming obstacles and advancing democracy in the European Neighbourhood - EMBRACE: EU HORIZON €215.000, 2022-2025 (Co-applicant / Work Package Leader)
  2. Invigorating Enlargement and Neighbourhood Policy for a Resilient Europe - InvigoratEU: EU HORIZON €200.000, 2024-2027 (Co-applicant / Work Package Leader)
  3. EU Politics in a Changing Global Context – CHANCE: Jean Monnet Chair, European Commission, €50.000, 2020 – 2023 (PI)
  4. Network on European Counter-Terrorism – EUCTER: Jean Monnet Network, European Commission €50.000, 2020 – 2023 (Co-applicant)
  5. Network on Commission’s political guidelines – RELAY: Jean Monnet Network, European Commission €25.000, 2020 – 2023 (Co-applicant)
  6. The influence of lobby groups on EU military operation 'Sophia': Refugees in Science (RiS/Hestia) Fellowship Grant, Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO) (Ref. 1154.18.037) €100.000, 2018 - 2020 (PI)
  7. Non-state actors in EU Foreign Policy: ASPASIA Grant, Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO) (Ref. 015.013.051) € 200.000, 2017 - 2023 (PI)
  8. Explaining Europe’s failure to deal with autocratic regimes: Which actors make and break effective democracy promotion? VENI Research Grant, Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO)(Ref. 451.12.015) € 250.000, 2013 - 2016 (PI)

Education Projects

22 January 2019

Giselle Bosse's course on "Survey research" UM best practice example

The course ‘Research Methods: Survey Research’ (BA European Studies), coordinated by Dr Bosse, has been selected by EDLAB as ‘Best Practice Example for the Use of Creative PBL’.

In this course, students carry out quantitative surveys for cultural and social organisations in Maastricht and the wider Meuse–Rhine Euroregion. Students also create interactive WordPress websites to present research results and policy recommendations to local clients.

Over the past ten years, students attending this course have carried out over 60 research projects for more than 30 local cultural and social organisations in Maastricht and the wider Meuse–Rhine Euroregion, including the Muziekgieterij, AINSI, Centre Céramique, Stichting SoAP, Filmtheater Lumiere, Opera Zuid, Marres, Maastricht University Green Office or the Holland Expat Center South.

Watch the video about this course.

Teaching

 

Course coordination (selection):

  • RBB0075 BA Marble Project: Russia's war against Ukraine
  • RES5020 The EU, Russia and China: Competing Approaches to Regional and Global Governance
  • RES5510 Research Design
  • RES5013 Research Project
  • EUS3502 Research Methods: Survey Design

Work for third parties

  • Associate Fellow (schrijven van beleidsnota's en commentaren) at European Democracy Hub (EDH)