Belgium: All hail the Pax Belgica generation
A new wave of young politicians has revived hopes for a more stable political future in Belgium. Writing in La Libre Belgique, Gilles Vanden Burre of the anti-separatist BPlus movement takes the view...
View ArticleWhere is the Union headed? (8): More Europe? No thanks.
Público, Lisbon – To stave off the risk of overindebted member states going bust, the EU 27 have taken steps – e.g. euro stabilisation plan, outline of economic governance – tending towards tighter...
View ArticleInstitutions: Welcome to the Holy See of Europe
The Economist, London – For most Eurocrats, EU federalism is more than a political conviction, it’s an article of faith. But while nationalism may still be fraught with dangers, nations are still...
View ArticleIntegration: Federal Europe? It just happened
The Times, London – Forget Angela Merkel’s treaty changes or David Cameron’s budget quibbles, the real event at last week Brussels summit was that Europe took an important step towards becoming a...
View ArticleEuropean integration: Paris and Berlin play it for Brussels
The Times, London – The “pact for competitiveness” is not so much a Franco-German takeover of the EU but a step towards a federal Europe, argues Times columnist Anatole Kaletsky. Which is why its...
View ArticleGreek crisis: The bailouts are building a federal state
The Times, London – The bailouts don’t work but they do allow the EU to build up centralised power at the expense of nation states, argues Times columnist Anatole Kaletsky. See more.
View ArticlePolitical fiction: Onwards to Europe 2.0
Die Welt, Berlin – Forget the nation-state: Europe would be much better off if it were fundamentally reorganised – into powerful regions in the north and the Alps and picturesque bankrupts in the south...
View ArticleIdeas: Why Hamlet is no euro-federalist
Evenimentul zilei, Bucharest – Although many commentators have called for it to be established, the United States of Europe remains a chimera, which is incompatible with the history and plurality of...
View ArticleEurozone crisis : Would Kohl or Mitterrand really do better?
De Volkskrant, Amsterdam – Are EU leaders failing to step up as real leaders in tackling the current crisis, as we so often hear? According to a Volkskrant columnist, it's more the political division...
View ArticleEurozone crisis: They are burying the federal ideal
Le Figaro, Paris – The 23 October Eurozone summit may be followed by a second meeting on the 26th, requested by France and Germany. Le Figaro argues that this development in the manner in which the...
View ArticleDebate: Jürgen Habermas: democracy is at stake
Le Monde, Paris – The Eurozone crisis has raised calls for greater political integration of the EU. However, sociologist Jürgen Habermas argues that the tactics adopted by European leaders have...
View ArticleEurozone crisis: Farewell sweet sovereignty...
El País, Madrid – If approved by the Twenty-Seven, the fiscal union proposed by Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy would be a decisive new stage on the path to European federalism. But are all willing...
View ArticleDebate: Europe must choose
“What will become of the European Union?” wonders The Economist. For the influential business weekly, the choice is simple, either a break-up of the euro, or a move towards closer European integration...
View ArticleDebate: Let’s make the United Statelets of Europe
EUobserver.com, Brussels – In economics, but also in diplomacy or simply in administration, the size of the country matters. For some EU states, which are too small on a global scale, the model no...
View ArticleEurozone crisis: Federalism or death!
Le Point, Paris – For French philosopher Bernard-Henri Lévy, Europe has no option but advance towards the simple goal of political union. If not, the euro will die. See more.
View ArticleEuropean integration: We need a referendum on the future of Europe
Il Foglio, Milan – The European project, as it has been constructed so far by the elites and their "benevolent paternalism", has run up against its limits. The next step towards political union cannot...
View ArticleDebate: “Europhorics”, our most dangerous friends
Die Zeit, Hamburg – There are the “Eurosceptics”, and there are “Eurohaters”. And then there are the “Europhorics”, who are to be found among both intellectuals and politicians and who are at least as...
View ArticleDebate: A federation, yes, but what kind?
Respekt, Prague – Whether it be political, budgetary, or based on financial solidarity, the idea of a more integrated EU is in fashion. But just what final form would the Federal Union take in the...
View ArticleDebate: Give us a break with your nation states
Der Spiegel, Hamburg – Those who are arguing today for more Europe have provoked the wrath of the professional democracy purists who hold up the nation state as an ideal model. But do we seriously want...
View ArticleDebate: Federal Europe best cure for current gloom
Corriere della Sera, Milan – For Italian writer Claudio Magris, the only way to dispel the dismay prompted by the European economic and political crisis is to create a strong, decentralised and...
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