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
-
Examining Kushner’s European Security Framework
Podcast
This week, American, Ukrainian, and Russian officials are gathering in Abu Dhabi for the first trilateral peace talks in nine months. But the negotiations could have implicati...
By Andrea Kendall-Taylor & Jim Townsend
-
CNAS Insights
Defense / Indo-Pacific Security / Transatlantic Security / Middle East Security / Energy, Economics & Security
CNAS Insights | National Security Agenda in the New Congress: A 10-Item To-Do ListWhen Democratic majorities sweep into Congress in January, Washington will return to divided government. The prospect of stalemate will be real, with Democrats prone to opposi...
By Richard Fontaine
-
A Blue Wave in America: The Midterms and Foreign Policy
Podcast
In a stunning midterm election, Democrats have won back control of the House and Senate. Even with some races still uncalled, Democrats have secured at least 54 Senate seats a...
By Andrea Kendall-Taylor & Jim Townsend
-
Transparent, Approved and Stoppable: A Standard for Government’s Use of AI
Commentary
Specific legislation should be required to approve the use of AI systems, and it should set rules for vetting AI system capabilities, limiting their use, and ending their depl...
By Jim Townsend
