But since it was founded, the world has changed dramatically, and so has the EU changed as well. Countries joined, one country left, trading has become easier, borders have been dismantled and cohesion has strengthened.
Wars, economic disasters and crises have strongly shaped the EU over the past 30 years.
Especially in the last couple of years, many disasters have happened and the EU has dealt with these problems in very different ways. The fundamental values of the EU: human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and human rights – have been challenged by the handling of crises such as the treatment of refugees, wars or even the treatment of EU countries that violate these values. The EU therefore needs to consider how it wants to position itself publicly and how it can act so that these values are once again paramount.
However, this will become difficult if more parties are elected that tend to want less EU involvement, even if they no longer demand withdrawal since the consequences of Brexit for Great Britain. We are currently seeing how Europe’s interests are repeatedly put on the back burner because we do not present a united front publicly, meaning we can hardly compete with world powers like the US, China or Russia. We could be so strong, but we make ourselves so weak. We need to be internally united on our stance towards wars and conflicts before we allow ourselves to be torn apart by external forces.
However, if individual countries prioritize their economic interests over their own values through dependence on autocracies and semi-autocracies, which are repeatedly involved in wars that violate international law, a common approach becomes virtually impossible. People seek protection from these dangers through nationalism, but miss the opportunities offered by a strong, united EU. A strong Europe can provide significantly greater security through a common defense against threats and its geopolitical weight. This requires close cooperation and the ability to react quickly among its members.
Even though the economy is important, the EU’s strong economic orientation in recent years has not only meant that its own values can be easily ignored, but also that other political interests receive significantly less attention. Climate protection is being hampered by strong economic lobbying, and by climate-skeptical and climate-denying parties in the EU Parliament. This continues to damage the livelihoods of future generations. For example, the ban on combustion engines was relaxed from 100% to 90%, meaning combustion engines can still be registered if
Green steel and alternative fuels are used as compensation. At the same time, there is a desire to remain open to innovation, even though it is clear that e-mobility is the future. Efforts are still being made to sell combustion engines for as long as possible, even with fuels that have low efficiency, high production costs, and extremely high
energy demands in their manufacture. The automotive industry is actively trying to keep its combustion engines in business as long as possible and is thus falling behind in terms of research. At the same time, there are complaints that countries like China are conquering the market by offering inexpensive electric cars and further advancing the electric vehicle market. Despite the current geopolitical and geo-economics dangers, the climate crisis is causing direct destruction of the Earth and will make life significantly more difficult and dangerous for all living beings, including humans, in the future. The EU, as the fourth-largest greenhouse gas producer (2023), must further advance climate protection and encourage other large greenhouse gas producers to follow suit.
The EU has tremendous potential and power, stemming from its diplomatic influence and the fact that it is one of the world´s largest single markets as well as one of the world’s largest economies.
The EU is not perfect, but it is up to us to constantly improve and change it. A democracy only functions with the participation of its citizens, and we as EU citizens must participate continuously so that it becomes as perfect as possible for us.
