The key principles of the foreign policy and diplomatic activity of the European Union, as well as the main bodies that are responsible for its implementation, have been outlined. The analysis of the European External Action Service as the "diplomatic agency" of the Union and the common and distinctive features of the institutional mechanism of diplomacy of national states and EU has also been made. There were used such scientific methods as: comparison, document analysis, structural and functional methods, as well as neo-institutional approach.
The topicality of the theme is determined by the internal processes that take place nowadays in the Ukrainian diplomatic service, in particular, its reformation taking into account the best world experience. Therefore, the studying of European practice, the identification of its positive and negative features will be useful for the reformation process of the Ukrainian diplomatic service. Also, finding out of the peculiarities of the organization of the EU foreign policy activities will provide an opportunity to intensify and improve the effectiveness of cooperation between the EU and Ukraine.
In general, the EEAS organizational structure needs to be improved and advanced, because it is the only suitable body for the current regulation of external relations, while it lacks resources for effective political coordination of a strategic nature. The development of proposals for improvement of the organizational structure of the Service can be the subject of further scientific research. After all, the only coherent vision of the EEAS as an entity that plays a key role in the EU's foreign policy and diplomacy has not been formed yet. First of all, the process of its formation depends on the aspirations of national states to strengthen the position of the EU on the global arena, as well as the ability of the EEAS to contribute to the implementation of these desires, while performing its functions with maximum benefit to the national interests of individual states.
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