When it comes to the formulation and implementation of foreign affairs policies, EU member states have firmly defended their national prerogatives. Thomas Henökl and Jarle Trondal, however, show that even in the unlikely case of foreign policy, EU-level bureaucrats working for the European External Action Service (EEAS) enjoy surprisingly high levels of autonomy from EU governments. Read their recent article “Unveiling the anatomy of autonomy: dissecting actor-level independence in the European External Action Service” published in the Journal of European Public Policy to explore how the EEAS’s bureaucratic structure helps to preserve the behavioural independence of its staff.