Dans les Balkans, durant l'éclatement de la Yougoslavie, force a été de constater que l'instrument communautaire de politique étrangère n'était ni conçu pour un terme suffisamment long pour avoir un effet préventif, ni suffisamment souple pour permettre une gestion efficace des crises.
In the Balkans during the break-up of Yugoslavia, the Community had to recognise that its instruments of foreign policy were neither sufficiently long-term to have any preventive effect, nor were they flexible enough to be able to carry out effective crisis management.