The Legal Relations of the European Union with the Principality of Andorraa

This article examines the evolving legal relationship between the EU and the Principality of Andorra, the largest of Europe’s non-EU micro-states. Given its proximity to the EU, being fully surrounded by it, and the extent to which integration through law has occurred within the EU, the law and policy of EU external relations demands that EU-Andorran relations must exist in some way. Despite Andorra’s geographic proximity and shared values with the EU, its legal integration remains fragmented and sector-specific. As uncovered in this article through a detailed analysis of several international agreements between the EU and Andorra, there are some asymmetries in market access, regulatory alignment, the institutional framework, and dispute settlement. With an envisaged association agreement between the EU and Andorra on the horizon, this article analyses the legal relations of the parties as they presently stand, accounting for their history, the substance of the international agreements, and the promise of what future legal relations ought to achieve between them.