The European Green Deal could accelerate convergence between newer and older member states. But if its implementation is badly managed, argues Julian Popov of the European Climate Foundation, it will instead widen the economic and social gap between East and West.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, most EU Member States found themselves obliged to derogate from certain civil and political rights. Even though these derogations differed in both style and extent, they have had implications for the democratic systems in the Member States. But what are the implications of these derogations for the EU legal system? Valeriia Varfolomieieva, Research Assistant in law at SIEPS, raises this issue by analyzing the European and EU legal framework for human rights derogations.
The concept of strategic autonomy has been a frequent topic in the EU in recent years. The continuous management of political crisis has expanded the discussion beyond security and defence. How do the Nordic countries relate to this pursuit of sovereignty and capacity to act? This anthology explains and analyses how Denmark, Finland and Sweden view strategic autonomy, what similarities and differences exist between the countries' attitudes and how they view their and the EU's role in a polarized world.
In this policy overview Katarina Engberg, senior advisor at SIEPS, investigates the likelihood that a European Defence Union will be created by 2025, the proclaimed goal of the European Commission. The overview combines an inventory of current and evolving elements of the EU’s defence policy with a framework for understanding the drivers behind a potential European Defence Union.
With growing global competition and less respect for the rules-based world order, the EU’s lack of an industrial policy has become problematic. This mismatch calls for explicit EU competences in order to strengthen the competitiveness of European companies globally, writes Jörgen Hettne, Associate Professor in EU Law.
China’s economic development and global impact are tilting the economic, political and military balances that have shaped the world since the end of the cold war. One fundamental step in China’s global strategy is the infrastructure project BRI. In this report, Svante E. Cornell and Niklas Swanström analyse its impact on the EU’s neighbourhood as well as on the European project.
The banking union was created to protect public finances against failing banks. Membership is mandatory for euro countries and voluntary for others. Outside of the euro area, the legal acts on supervision must however be implemented through national decisions. This and other legal differences are analysed by Dominique Ritleng, Professor of European Law.
The long-term budget has been stable over time, hovering around 1 percent of GNI. Its core may remain in that neighbourhood, but the galaxy of satellites around it seems much more expansive. With an emerging mix of grants and loans following the COVID-19 crisis, we may soon see a long-term budget in the vicinity of 2 percent, argues Daniel Tarschys, senior advisor at Sieps and a former Secretary General of the Council of Europe.
Recently, EU leaders have repeated the message that the Union needs to be more “geopolitical”. What does this mean? Richard Youngs, professor of International Relations, analyses this ambition by questioning its underlying assumptions. Without a modern and innovative form of geopolitics, he writes, the EU’s international identity risks becoming more uncertain and ambiguous – a risk that the Covid-19 pandemic is likely to reinforce.
The European Commission has proposed a possibility to suspend financial transfers to Member States with deficiencies as regards the rule of law. In an analysis of the proposal, professors Armin von Bogdandy and Justyna Łacny conclude that it has merits but raises legal doubts. Suspending EU funds could also harm the people they are meant to protect.