Open but Secure Europe%E2%80%99s Path to Strategic Interdependence 2025

Conclusion By Arancha González Laya, Dean, Paris School of International Affairs (PSIA), Sciences Po The European Union is at a crossroads. It can either take its future into its own hands or let it be determined by China or by voters in the US Midwest. It can stand united and shape its future. Or member states can pursue their own nationalistic paths and push the bloc into economic and geopolitical irrelevance. The choice is up to Europeans. The tasks ahead are enormous. After decades of progress, the EU now faces the steepest climb in its history: to integrate energy and technology, capital markets and above all security and defence more closely and swiftly. Looking up at this north face, it can be tempting to declare the European project defeated, to exaggerate its weaknesses and belittle its strengths, forgetting that the EU has the agency to reach new heights. As the ideas in this report show, the EU can make its economy more competitive and sustainable; it can make its society more resilient and better protect itself against the growing risks in its neighbourhood, particularly Russia. The task now is to mobilize political support for this agenda in European capitals. The good news is that European citizens are on board. The latest Eurobarometer of autumn 2024 shows that 51% of Europeans trust the EU, the highest since 2007 and well above the levels of trust in national parliaments and governments.53 Europeans have identified security and defence, climate, migration and economic competitiveness as their priorities for European action over the next five years. And 44% of them believe that ensuring peace and stability will have the highest positive impact on their lives in the short term. This is important political capital available to governments and European institutions looking to push the continent towards strategic interdependence. Moving forward will require three ingredients: The first has to do with the political economy of reforms and the trade-offs involved. While a lot has been written about the priority areas for EU action, there has been less debate about how to advance them both in terms of roadmaps and possible compromises. This report attempts to move the discussion towards these more granular aspects. The second has to do with the need for integrated policy-making. As this report details, there are clear links between many of the required reforms. Attention should therefore be paid to developing them in an integrated manner rather than in silos. The European Commission’s new organization around vice-presidents could help facilitate this. Finally, the EU can achieve greater success by combining its domestic agenda with building stronger alliances with key partners around the world. First and foremost, by advancing the enlargement of the European Union. As others retreat into isolationism, the EU can build its resilience by reinforcing its partnerships across Latin America, Africa, the Gulf and Asia, as well as with those right on its doorstep, such as Switzerland and the United Kingdom. Europe cannot achieve strategic interdependence alone. It needs to be more unified at home and more assertive abroad. Paraphrasing the great European Jacques Delors, “Come on member states, be brave, the European Spring is still ahead of us!” 51% of Europeans trust the EU, the highest since 2007. This is important political capital available to governments and European institutions looking to push the continent towards strategic interdependence. Open but Secure: Europe’s Path to Strategic Interdependence 24