A Mid-Life Crisis for the EU?
by Lisa Kurtz
The festivities took place on the weekend of March 25, 2007 the anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Rome. On that date in 1957, six countries signed the treaty, bringing into existence the European Economic Community. That alliance evolved into the E.U., which today has twenty-seven member states. Despite the undeniable progress that has been made in the last fifty years - the demise of communism, increased life expectancies, higher standards of living, and growing economies - questions about the direction of E.U. policy remain.
A European Constitution, established in 2004, cannot take effect until it is ratified by every member nation. The Constitution was voted down by France and the Netherlands in 2005, and even the E.U.'s Commission of the European Communities has little faith in its prospects. In its "Plan-D for Democracy, Dialogue, and Debate," the Commission glumly notes that "in the current circumstances, it is unlikely that the Constitution will be ratified in the foreseeable future." Hope for the document is so dim that the Berlin Declaration, signed by the E.U. delegates on March 25, did not even mention it. The sole allusion cited a "renewed common basis" that it hoped the E.U. to undertake before the parliamentary elections of 2009.
The Declaration instead focused on the E.U.'s accomplishments of the last half-century, such as open borders, the common market and the Euro, and the rise of democracy. However, there are many limitations to the E.U.'s achievements. The Euro, for example, has only been adopted as the official currency of thirteen member nations, although the Czech Republic recently announced plans for adoption. The distribution of income among the E.U. states also poses problems. Admittance of new member states since 2000 has increased the E.U.'s population by 20% but raised GDP by only 5%. Twenty-two billion euros were allocated for the period between 2000 and 2006 as aid for the poorest regions of the E.U. These regional directives, according to the E.U.'s business policy website, strive to create solidarity and cohesion.
The E.U. seems to be lacking in both: in addition to the debate over the constitution, opposition has been mounting to the proposed admittance of candidate countries Turkey, Croatia, and Macedonia. The Berlin Declaration glosses over internal strife, instead emphasizing "European unification" and acknowledging global challenges rather than regional ones. The Declaration sets forth an ambitious set of goals for the future: combating terrorism, organized crime, illegal immigration, racism, and xenophobia, while also leading the fight against hunger, poverty, and disease, and staving off climate change.
E.U. President José Manuel Durão Barroso underscored this positive, forward-looking perspective in his speech entitled "A stronger Europe for successful globalisation." He appealed to E.U. citizens to stand behind the E.U. and complete the "unfinished European adventure" which started fifty years ago. He reminded them that Europe is fifty times as prosperous now than it was at the conception of the E.U., insisting that the "community method" of the E.U. made it all possible. "The conflicts of the twentieth century made us small," said Barroso, but "European unity can give our greatness back."
