Future of Europe. Between Remarkable Aspirations and Crucial Reforms
Future of Europe. Between Remarkable Aspirations and Crucial Reforms

Author(s): Georgiana Ciceo
Subject(s): Politics / Political Sciences, Politics, EU-Accession / EU-DEvelopment
Published by: Университет за национално и световно стопанство (УНСС)
Keywords: Future of Europe; Differentiated Integration
Summary/Abstract: The numerous challenges faced by the European Union today from Brexit or the rise in popularity of populist parties, to reinforced West-East as well as North South divisions or querying the democratic values, in particular the European ones, or a drift towards a kind of nationalism resistant to a deeper European integration have made necessary a new underpinning of the internal unity and solidarity. Against this background the 60th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Rome was used as an opportunity to reaffirm the dedication to working together and open a continent-wide discussion on the future of the European Union. The idea of the form that the European Union will take in the near future has begun to emerge with the White Paper dedicated to this subject, launched by the European Commission. The 5 scenarios that represent the Commission’s contribution to the new European chapter were not a product of the imagination, but a highlight of the continuous reaffirmation of trust in the Union. They represent a commitment to further working together, albeit in some cases at a different pace, towards the advancement of European integration. This contribution aims to assess the state of the current debate on the future of Europe and to outline the main directions of the present discussion.

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