Old Wine in New Bottles? The European Union's Organizational Response to Reforming EU–African Migration Cooperation

In 2015, the European Commission responded to renewed demands from its political environment to achieve more results in its external relations with African countries in migration. This article explores how calls for action from domestic arenas formed an adaptation pressure on the EU's external migration governance, and first examines the implications of this for political cooperation and instrumentation. In assessing adaptation in these areas, this article addresses the question of whether a fundamental redefinition of the EU's engagement with African states has occurred. Secondly, the article proposes that mal‐integration of policy emerges as an organizational compromise that allows a number of functional interests to be met. It allows for the broad enlisting of support from different parts of the administration; it enables the performance of a response to demands that cannot be realistically met; and allows a reconciling of different interests under one approach.