Sustainable Development as a Transformative Axis of the European Union’s Trade Policy

Christian Arias and José Varela-Aldás ()
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Christian Arias: Facultad de Ciencias Económicas Administrativas y Negocios, Universidad Tecnológica Indoamérica, Ambato 180103, Ecuador
José Varela-Aldás: Centro de Investigación MIST, Facultad de Ingenierías, Universidad Tecnológica Indoamérica, Ambato 180103, Ecuador

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 15, 1-24

Abstract: This study analyzes the strategic and institutional frameworks that precede the formulation of trade agreements, with a focus on the European Union’s external action and its link to the Sustainable Development Goals. Based on a documentary research design, this study examines official documents from the EU and the United Nations, as well as the academic literature indexed in Scopus and Web of Science. The methodological process involved four phases: systematic search, selection and classification, inductive content coding, and interpretative analysis. Through this process, this study identifies discursive patterns, normative tensions, and policy orientations that reveal the EU’s evolving approach to sustainable trade governance. The findings highlight the existence of a growing institutional alignment between trade policy and sustainable development frameworks, yet also expose persistent gaps in coherence and implementation. This article contributes to the academic debate by offering a critical and structured analytical lens to understand how trade agreements are politically and institutionally prefigured before their negotiation phase.

Keywords: sustainable development; European Union trade policy; green economy; circular economy; European Green Deal; sustainable development goals (SDGs); trade agreements; environmental standards; climate diplomacy (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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