但EEAS最终在与欧盟委员会的扯皮中无疾而终，而即将卸任的高级代表凯瑟琳·阿什顿（Catherine Ashton）也没能缓和这一紧张局面，因为她自己也不愿卷入欧盟内部的纠纷中。
But the EEAS ended up in a turf war with the European Commission, and outgoing High Representative Catherine Ashton did little to ease the tension, owing to her unwillingness to involve herself in intra-EU disagreements.