The current crisis that affects the EU is indeed one of political leadership. It is economic too, for many of its causes are linked to the euro-zone’s stagnant growth, high unemployment rates in some Member States and rogue fiscal policies in others. We could even argue that it is a crisis of values, of lost faith in party politics and in liberal democracies as they have been understood and put into practice in the past decades. However, these are just partial explanations to the present existential crisis, for it is exactly that: it is existential, it is about identity, and it is about the EU’s role and purpose.
The current political and economic ills are part of a deeper malaise. After all, the British do not question the use of the United Kingdom as a political organisation simply because their economy endures difficulties and its politicians loose credibility before their citizens. The Italians do not want to put an end to the Italian State because of Berlusconi, they only want to get rid of Berlusconi. Then why are Europeans questioning once again the purpose and the very future of the EU during the present times? Why can’t we achieve a constructive debate about economic governance, redistribution or social welfare, instead of reopening over and over again the debate about the EU’s future?
Europe is lacking a common story, a common narrative about its origins, its outcome and its telos. In contrast to many States, including its Member States, the EU is still missing a convincing account of its own past and present that binds its citizens towards the future. To date, the narrative of European integration is one of technocratic engineering orchestrated by national and EU elites, driven by the legitimate goal of avoiding war between the nations of Europe through the means of an internal market. But fascinating and noble as this may seem, the ghost of war and the internal market are simply not enough anymore. It is time to explain why the EU is much more than a peace-driven project, and it is time for politicians to face their citizens to address some difficult issues.
It is time to tell Europe’s citizens that the Union’s Member States, including its big States, have become irrelevant players in the world scene, transformed into a caricature of their glorious and imperial past. It is also time to tell Europe’s citizens that the EU is not a State and that it will never become one. The EU was created precisely to put an end to the ills and wrongs of Europe’s nation States, and the future of the Union depends on the very existence of its Member States and not their dissolution like sugar cubes in a glass of water. It is also time to explain why Europe needs fiscal redistribution in order to assure prosperity and growth throughout its territory. It is time to realise that Europe must assume the responsibility of its own defence through a common structure that puts effectively into action its Member State’s resources. And it is time to decide, once and for all, where does Europe end and where does it begin. If the Union is soon to enlarge beyond its current frontiers, citizens must know that Europe will undergo profound transformations. Citizens must know that, and our politicians must face the challenge.
