Will There Ever Be A United Europe?

Will There Ever Be A United Europe?

A truly united Europe would be a powerful geopolitical entity, capable of wielding influence which only the United States and China have today, but will it ever happen? It's hard to say, but something must change, the current EU is sort of in a state of limbo, being too middle-road to truly be successful long-term. This is why.

[joaquimbarbosa]

A european identity doesn't need to give up its national identity

[marcothebarber]

As a Portuguese I love my country, but I'm European as well and Europe have to do more together

[victorvandenbrink]

I am Dutch. I feel Dutch, and I love my beautiful country of The Netherlands. However. My experience as a citizen of my own country, would be so much more contrived and isolated, if not for the other wonderful countries that surround mine. My country would not feel the same if not for the German tourists, the Italian restaurants, the Polish workers and the Scandinavian students.

My national identity, therefore, could not exist without my European identity. And eventhough I'd like to have my country keep its own legislation and culture, I would like to see my European brethren continue to be part of my life. And to continue to cooperate and steer our amazing continent in a better direction.

[savvasavraam]

I‘m Greek from Cyprus. I‘m European. I‘m both. I vote for unity! Just like states of the US that have a lot of autonomy but also unity as one country.

[vinniechan]

I think the best chance of a united Europe is to be pragmatic and take it slow

[swagcat]

Interesting video! There's a few comments I'd like to make though:
1) In the beginning of the video you described the Western Union as the organization which eventually became the EU. That's not exactly true. The EU actually originated from the European Coal and Steel Community. The Western Union was a separate entity which was later integrated into NATO and the defence oriented arm of the EU.
2) You also mentioned that a European Federation would be nation-state and would require it's citizens to give up their national identity in favor of a European one. This isn't exactly true either. Granted, a European Federation currently does not exist and thus it could theoretically take any for imaginable. In spite of that, even the most ardent supporters of federalization usually don't imagine it as a country with a single dominant ethnic identity like a nation-state. As the motto of the EU states, there is strength in diversity. A European federation would likely not require every citizen to share the exact same ethnic identity. It would rather be a country comprised of many different people groups unified under one country for the mutual benefit of all.

[pastvz]

4:50 European and national identities are not mutually exclusive though... Just look at Spain, where regional, national and European identities are all present in most people.

[neuralwarp]

There are 27 countries in the EU. There are 54 countries in Europe.

[alexandercrichton]

You also have to remember by the time this comes to pass the EU will probably have expanded to included more European countries (Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, Serbia etc...) so it will be much bigger geographically, economically and by population.

[biblical]

A unified Europe would be the greatest thing to happen since the Roman Empire. Europe under one central government, one military, one GDP whilst also keeping all of their individual cultures. Each state governed by their own elected governor. It would be the greatest country to ever exist.

[northernleigonare]

As an Englishman I'm crying on the inside.

So many stupid mistakes.

[MustacheCashStash]

If Europe does unite, Switzerland will become the new Lesotho

[slavianalbanovich]

I think it's the only solution to survive in a world of superpowers. But I am convinced that the road will be uphill and that this can only happen after 2050.

[gumansingh]

I think the main point, that is not being mentionned here, is the Subsidiarity principle. This point is crucial in understanding the formation and developpement of EU and consists of letting political actions be taken as close as the targetted population as possible. This effectively means that if a political action is to be taken on any subject, we need to figure out what is the smallest scale at which it can be applied, and then let this entity lead the action (EU, countries, region, cities etc.). Therefore, this means that the EU can act as a whole only when the interest of a political action is best served by EU as a whole rather than on a national level.

It is important to keep this principle in mind when talking about an eventual federalization of EU (which i think is not realistic, even if i'm all for more power to EU). The Subsidiarity principle can however also lead to more EU level decisions by mutualizing more national interests into wider EU interests. There is a case to be made about the war in Ukraine for example, as it is widely seen as a threat to EU as a whole, that would be best adressed as a Union rather than at the national level. Mutualizing national interests into EU wide interests is however a very difficult task on many subjects. This implies unanimity amongst EU countries on many fundamental subjects (military, legislation, justice, economy) which is very hard to come to in many cases.

that being said, for the Subsidiarity principle to be fully operational and optimaly respected, it needs to be symetrical, meaning that if a type of decision can be made at a national level, there is also tool for this type of decision to also be made at the gobal EU level. This implies for example that EU should have military and defensive institutions that are capable of making EU wide military actions, which is sadly not the case right now.

Side note: its a missed opportunity not to talk about the Subsidiarity principle as it is in the Swiss constitution and is part of what gives such autonomy to Swiss cantons !

[Leaf]

Its possible because india has done it. Almost each state in india have thier own languages, food and culture. The only unifying factor is the indian identity. We have our indians identity and our own state identity just like European Union could have a European identity and a french or spanish identity

[jacob_dcdn]

I am Czech and as a proud Czech, I identify as European, no problem there.

[altosh]

A united Europe would be one of the biggest achievements of mankind in history.

[nobodyjustme]

Indonesia is larger than Europe, have more than 1, 700 islands, 1, 340 ethnicities, +500 languages, and 38 provinces. And our slogan also: "Bhineka Tunggal Ika" (Unity in Diversity). We once changed the name of our country "United States of Indonesia" within 1949 – 1950. But then back again to Republic of Indonesia until today.

So, as a people who living in a country that larger than Europe, and have much diversity than Europe, I think Europe can be united as long they have the same vision and purposes.

[MegaCooliam]

Confederation please. Federation would lead to the same problems as the US, where centralised power makes things difficult for individual states. Common defence, forein policy for the EU is a must, but the regional autonomy is what makes europe unique and gives it flexibility over the US.

[rain-cyve]

I personally feel European myself. I m Romanian but I traveled to lots of European countries. I feel I have more in common with other 20s something year olds from all across the Union rather than the older people from my own country. The language is the thing that devides us but I d rather say we can all communicate in a common language like English.