Europe's defining challenges

Abstract

Europe is currently facing challenges on many fronts: internally and externally, but also in the short and long term. The events in 2014 have reminded us that we are privileged to live in a European community of values that secures our peace and prosperity. The Russian aggression at the very borders of the EU has thrown Ukraine, a country that aspires to EU membership, into political turmoil. It is the forces that confront us now, such as Putin’s Russia with its neo-imperial aspirations, and our political responses to them that will define the EU for years to come. These challenges can take many forms. Populist movements and political extremists are also challenges that could threaten our peaceful post–Cold War order. What all these challenges have in common is that we need to address them today and in a cooperative manner. This is reflected in the call of the new President of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, for a new start for Europe. The authors of this issue of the European View have seized this opportunity to take a timely look at the broad range of challenges that the new Commission and European Parliament will have to deal with. The articles do not stop at assessing the current situation. Rather, each offers clear policy proposals for what the political approach should look like and how it could be implemented, on not only the national but also the European level. Hence, this issue of the European View also offers a glimpse of several key policies on which the Commission, in cooperation with the European Parliament and Council, will need to work in the upcoming five years. The first section looks at some of the internal challenges that need our full attention—issues such as rising populism and political extremism. The worst financial and economic crisis since the Second World War has without a doubt left its mark on the European economy. By stabilising the economies of the EU member states, we have shown solidarity in a time of crisis. But the crisis is not