NATO and Out-Of-Area Issues : Intra-Alliance Dynamics and the Discursive Change of a Norm

This dissertation demonstrates that the out-of-area norm's new proactive version is not completely internalized in NATO, despite 20 years of change process.

Through the discursive analysis of norm change in three steps, I found that there might still be actors in the Atlantic Alliance who may prefer the old defensive and reactive version of the out-of-area norm, dating from the Cold War.

The first step of emergence was successful, with the U.S. executive playing the norm entrepreneur role. In the second step, the cascade of the new norm was assured via the U.K. executive's efforts as the main norm follower. However, on the last step of internalization, I show that some actors still resort to the old version of the norm to argue and justify their positions.

It is an evidence which indicates how it may be difficult to change a norm with a legal basis defended by a treaty.