October 02, 2023
A Sovereign European Union Must Answer to the People
Recent events have exposed two key weaknesses of the European Union. First, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine illustrated the bloc’s dependence on countries outside of it in strategic areas such as energy and defense, prompting calls for greater “European sovereignty.” Second, the “Qatargate” influence-buying scandal and subsequent failure to make sufficient reforms laid bare the deficit of accountability in EU institutions, where decision-makers have scant requirements to faithfully represent the interests of citizens.
Insufficient action to address its accountability deficit undermines the European Union’s Westphalian sovereignty and, consequently, its domestic sovereignty.
Although these defects may seem unrelated, they are in fact inextricably linked. Until the European Union’s representation problems are fixed, the bloc is unlikely to succeed in bolstering its sovereignty—as citizens will push back against Brussels’s perceived illegitimate power grabs. With European Parliament elections around the corner in 2024 and a more treacherous geopolitical environment highlighted by the war in Ukraine, waiting for this inevitable backlash is not an option.
Read the full article from Lawfare.
More from CNAS
-
Sharper: America’s Edge
Commentary
A volatile global security environment requires the United States and its allies to develop new tactics and capabilities to deal with novel global threats. On June 3, policyma...
By Charles Horn
-
Ex-NATO Official: Putin Is ‘Stringing Along Trump’ to Push for Sanctions Relief
Video
Jim Townsend, an adjunct senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security, weighs in on peace talks after the Putin-Zelenskyy-Trump call and whether the U.S. is failing...
By Jim Townsend
-
Ukraine Is Europe’s War. Isn’t It?
Commentary
The Trump administration therefore faces a choice: It can stand up to the Kremlin now, in Ukraine, or later....
By Andrea Kendall-Taylor
-
Droning On: How Ukraine and Russia Have Revolutionized Drone Warfare
Podcast
In this episode of Three Questions, Paul Saunders speaks with Samuel Bendett, an adjunct senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security. Mr. Bendett is a military ana...
By Samuel Bendett
