Experts & Staff

Thomas Klau

ECFR Alumni · Former Senior Policy Fellow

Biography

Thomas Klau used to work for ECFR as Senior Policy Fellow and Head of the Paris office.

 

 

 

The euro: Buying time and muddling through are no longer enough

As EU leaders gather in Brussels for the European Council meeting, they need to remember that their efforts to save the euro do not just affect their impact at the next elections, but also their long term legacy. Buying time and muddling through are no longer enough.  

A new deal for the eurozone

The Maastricht foundation that underpins the € has been shown to be a fair weather construct, unsuited to the economic troubles of the last two years. Now a new storm-proof framework is needed, with Germany sharing economic sovereignty in exchange for other eurozone members buying into a new governance model largely devised in Berlin.

Europe would welcome a surprise act of statesmanship

The historic reordering of British politics has been overshadowed by the world?s worst financial crisis in generations. The rest of Europe waits to see what David Cameron will do.

EU policy makers need a political reality check

The European Commission?s budget monitoring proposals are sensible, but to succeed they must be firmly rooted in the democratic procedures of member states

Welt ohne F?hrung

Obama’s China-Visit was more than an episode: it symbolises the end of a long era of global US leadership. The power vacuum will have to be filled by stronger global institutions. A piece in German.

Besser wird’s nicht

The Lisbon Treaty makes the EU neither efficient nor democratic enough. But it was the best available deal under the outdated and foolish unanimity rule. A piece in German.

Guides for Westerwelle

Two predecessors illuminate how Guido Westerwelle could leave his mark on German foreign policy

Publications

Articles

The view from the capitals: the EU budget summit

On Thursday EU leaders will meet in Brussels to discuss the EU budget for the next seven years. ECFR experts in Spain, the UK, Bulgaria, Denmark, France, Germany and Italy tell us what to expect.   

Hollande has reinvented politics in Europe

The implosion of Greece's party political landscape and the victory of François Hollande in France transformed the political debate in Europe. Moreover, both events act as a catalyst for a political reinvention of the eurozone and an emergence of a transnational political space.  

Preparing for President Hollande

The prospect of a victory by François Hollande may be causing nervousness in Berlin and elsewhere, but the socialist candidate in the French presidential elections is a natural compromise-builder, and Europe should have no real reason to fear his victory.  

France deserves better than this

As France votes in the first round of its presidential elections, the French people have been denied an analytically, politically honest and comprehensive engagement by the politicians with the real issues at hand in France and Europe.  

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.  

Merci, mon Général, bonjour Monsieur Monnet

Throughout the Eurozone crisis, France has been well served by its decisive presidential system. But as thoughts turn to reforming the way the Eurozone works, France must come to terms with the power implications of a more federal system.  

Should the euro be abolished?

In this contribution to an online Economist debate on the future of the euro, Thomas Klau argues that the single currency is indispensible if Europe is to punch its weight on the global stage in the 21st century.  

Two challenges for Europe’s politicians

The longer term challenges for Europe's politicians are to contest real power at a European level and be honest with voters about the issues confronting the continent in the 21st century.  

The euro: Buying time and muddling through are no longer enough

As EU leaders gather in Brussels for the European Council meeting, they need to remember that their efforts to save the euro do not just affect their impact at the next elections, but also their long term legacy. Buying time and muddling through are no longer enough.  

Podcasts

In the media