As things stand, the European Union is considered sacred and inviolable in the eyes of the European establishment and intellectuals. Even the UK, which has already left the EU, the Labor government that has come to power still harbors a deep, underlying pro-EU sentiment. The gaze of UK Prime Minister Starmer is constantly fixed on the EU, rather than on the United States, with which the UK now has differing paths and ideologies.
The European obsession with the EU is understandable, but outside of Europe, the rest of the world does not view the EU the same way. In fact, the EU has now become an anomaly. An Israeli scholar has sharply criticized the EU establishment and intellectuals as lazy, foolish, arrogant, selfish, and keen on censorship. Such remarks are naturally quite extreme and excessive, but they also offer some food for thought.
The war in Ukraine has revealed more of the EU's hypocrisy. Whenever it comes to financial aid, discussions almost always contain words like "commitments" and "willingness", and the strong presence of EU diplomats can make one mistakenly believe that they have already provided substantial sums. In reality, as the war has dragged on, it was not until Ukraine recently cut off its natural gas pipelines that the world realized the true situation: the Ukraine war has now been ongoing for nearly three years, and EU countries have consistently been purchasing Russian energy resources, continuously providing Russia with funds for the war. The rhetoric does not match the actions, and such contradictory behavior makes it no wonder that Israeli scholar would consider them as "foolish" and "selfish".
The current European Union establishment and intellectuals can be understood by looking at what has happened and is still happening in the EU and European countries:
1. The EU's antisemitic establishment and intellectuals view Palestinians as the oppressed, and, even if that means that atrocities committed by the side they support such as massacres can be accepted or at least understood.
2. EU governance policies primarily focus on continuously increasing welfare levels, seeing it as a political success. Meanwhile, production is considered the responsibility of businesses. For the EU establishment and intellectuals, increasing welfare is seen as their main accomplishment.
3. Europeans focus primarily on art and pride themselves on being "superior". However, this obsession has evolved to extremes, often promoting eroticism and even drug use, along with various controversial forms of art.
4. The EU has accepted a large number of immigrants from the Middle East. Sympathy and compassion have been politicized in European countries, and these feelings even serve as a competitive tool, symbolizing influence, status, and national identity.
5. Religion has seen a significant decline in influence in the EU. Highlighting the misconduct of religious leaders has become a common focus for many European intellectuals.
6. Europe's technological and academic accomplishments are limited, with very few Nobel Prizes in science beyond cultural fields. However, European intellectuals are often extremely arrogant, boasting and offering empty rhetoric. . There is a perception that they feel entitled to share their perspectives globally, including with the United States, with their outmoded knowledge.
7. In the past, the EU establishment and intellectuals mainly relied on exerting pressures on the U.S. through criticism so that the latter would bear the responsibility for Europe's military defense, which allowed EU countries' economies to grow by at least an additional 2%.
8. EU countries are still unable to break free from the illusion of globalization, clinging to the belief that being united makes them stronger than the U.S. In reality, their economic growth rate is around 1.8%, and the gap between Europe and the U.S. is widening.
9. Some EU countries are facing significant challenges related to refugees, with the associated costs placing a strain on citizens. These expenses are difficult to reduce and have impacted the economic and social structures of both the African countries of origin and the host nations. Its sole result is the enhancement of the EU's global reputation.
10. EU countries have uncritically embraced climate policies, which have led to increased costs that are often passed on to the public. As a result, inflation has become a significant long-term challenge for the EU.
11. The European intellectuals, with their "Greater Europe" dream, have created a collectivist monster, i.e., the EU, an entity with an excessive amount of regulations and institutional constraints that hinder productivity growth. This has led to a huge number of unproductive bureaucrats, resulting in companies relocating out of Europe as they cannot survive there. This has also turned Europe into a dumping ground for products.
12. European intellectuals have developed an awkward cultural narrative where prioritizing economic development and production in Europe is often viewed negatively. This has contributed to the social climate in which right-wing politics has gained traction in Europe.
Such an EU and Europe are clearly unsustainable and are, in fact, in the process of falling apart. The war in Ukraine has brought the conflict to the very heart of Europe. U.S. President Donald Trump has been relentlessly criticized by EU officials and intellectuals over the past few years, but now they are shocked to realize that disaster is imminent. Not only is the U.S. threatening to impose taxes on the EU, but it is also starting to refuse to take on Europe's defense responsibilities, no longer willing to do the "unappreciated" work.
What is even more serious is that with the commencement of peace talks for Ukraine, the U.S. has made it clear that it will not participate in the peacekeeping military deployment. Europe will have to send its own troops and fund the peacekeeping operations. This means that EU forces will be directly confronting Russian troops across the line, and any conflict could immediately pull European nations into a full-scale war. It is no wonder that after Trump's peace negotiation conditions were revealed, some directly expressed that Ukraine is finished, and so is Europe.
What does the future hold for the EU?
There are actually three possible options. The first is that the EU continues to exist and remains the same. This possibility is increasingly diminishing, as it is clear that the EU has not managed itself well in the past, and the rise of right-wing political forces in Europe further proves this. The second is the collapse and disintegration of the EU. Considering the widespread adoption of the euro and the EU's deep integration into European society, the cost of such an approach would be very high, and the social and economic turmoil would be severe. Additionally, the EU is not without its merits. The third option is EU reform, taking a path of transformation. In my view, this is the most feasible future path that the EU establishment and intellectuals must accept.
In fact, the EU has always been an ongoing process of reform, and reform has been an inherent part of its purpose. In 1951, the signing of the Treaty of Paris established the European Coal and Steel Community, the precursor to the EU. In 1957, six European countries signed the Treaty of Rome, creating the European Economic Community and beginning the push for economic integration in Europe. In 1986, the Single European Act was passed, paving the way for the creation of a single market. In 1993, the Maastricht Treaty officially came into force, marking the establishment of the EU and introducing the euro as a single currency. In 2007, the Treaty of Lisbon was signed, further reforming the EU's decision-making mechanisms and institutional structure. Therefore, the issue is not whether the EU should reform, but rather in which direction these reforms should take place.
The future of the EU may, to some extent, require a return to some fundamental principles. The most realistically feasible reform option is to retain integration in foreign affairs and finance while allowing individual countries to have autonomy over the rest. This kind of reform would, of course, be a painful choice for Europe, but it is a necessary correction and an inevitable trend. It is far better than a complete collapse, where everyone suffers together. Therefore, reform is the true way forward for the EU. If the EU establishment and intellectuals continue to struggle with this issue, they will only let the last opportunity for meaningful reform slip away.
Final analysis conclusion:
What Europe truly needs now is a final dose of rationality. Before social unrest and despair take hold in the countries, the EU establishment and intellectuals must find the last vestiges of reason and begin pushing for reform. Beyond that, there is no other alternative.
