Václav Havel remembered
A defining figure of late twentieth century Europe, Václav Havel, has died. Among his many roles he was an ECFR Council Member, and is being mourned by those who knew, respected and – sometimes – argued with him.
European Power
A European response to the crisis
The crisis of the euro has been a chilling reminder that money is about far more than coins and a means of exchange. We are now standing on the edge of a precipice, and we Europeans have the choice of shirking responsibility or laying the foundations of a new Europe.
The economics of the summit: an expensive signal to the ECB
The only real success of the euro summit was that it might encourage the ECB to step up its role in the euro area. But years more austerity and a major rift with Britain are a high price the whole euro zone will have to pay for German ideology.
How the eurozone crisis affects EU power
The economic crisis has huge implications for EU foreign policy. There is less time for it, less money available, and Europe's ability to project soft power is in a coma.
Democracy put to the test
Just as the mechanisms that made democracy function in city states were not adequate for governing nation states, representative democracies today are showing themselves incapable of managing, effectively and democratically, the system that is emerging in Europe.
Four Scenarios for the Reinvention of Europe
The impossible is also necessary if the euro and Europe are to be saved
To get out of this crisis we need to rebuild Europe from scratch
The answer to the EU's current problems is to rebuild from scratch, replacing the existing EU with a new, two layered structure with an inner and an outer core.
Spain after the elections: the ‘Germany of the South’?
Spain’s election, caught between the euro crisis and Arab revolutions
A deepening crisis requires further integration
The economic crisis is now at a critical point, and Europe's leaders must chose between a federated eurozone power or yielding to the power of the markets and economic and political disruption.
Europe’s deceptive aggregate deficits
Despite the deepening crisis, when taken as a whole the Eurozone's basic figures do not look too bad. But because the Eurozone is a flawed construction these figures are only a distraction, and the need for real reforms remains.