Pan-European Identity during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

The coronavirus pandemic triggered a qualitative reformatting of the pan-European identity. Early in the pandemic, it clashed with national self-awareness. As Brussels attempted to strengthen solidarity and cohesion, the situation in some EU countries became extremely instable. The present article contains a theoretical description of the concept of EU identity and the transformations it underwent during the COVID-19 pandemic. It focuses on the early challenges to the EU’s identity, its subsequent plunge into uncertainty and confusion, and Brussels’ attempts to build trust and solidarity as the basic principles of the EU’s identity. The author analyzed the Eurobarometer surveys to reveal the public attitude towards the two conflicting levels of identity. During the pandemic, the pan-European identity served as a protective mechanism against the exacerbation of chronic unification problems.