This title was first published in 2002. This volume aims to provide fresh insight into the complex struggles of the European Union (EU) institutions and the member states over who should negotiate trade issues on Europe”s behalf. The book makes effective use of new empirical data on the daily operations of European trade policy based on interviews with high-ranking trade officials. Furthermore, this text is the first institutionalist analysis of the Amsterdam and Nice Intergovernmental Conferences (IGCs) in regards to the Common Commercial Policy (CCP). In sum, it provides the reader with an introduction into the field of international trade regulation from an EU perspective. Presented within the context of the long-standing institutional debate and using case studies on the operation of the CCP in the 1990s, this book facilitates a deeper understanding of the challenges facing Europe in the 21st century.