We need the United States of Europe!

Brussels, 19th February. The image Europe has shown the world on Monday is anything but decisive. We are back again at a table of indecision and internal quarrels. EU heads of state and government who should defend and take care of our citizens are leaving them out in the cold, literally. The outcome of the Paris emergency meeting is nothing but words. This cannot go on, especially in this increasingly fragmented and growingly valueless world order where autocrats set the tone. And they set it f

Feb 21, 2025
An old style image that looks like a magazine cover, where the EU does not allow itself to be crushed by the UE and China.

We, at Volt, are done waiting! We called upon leaders to finally step up to the challenge; to act resolutely and together to send a clear message to the people of Ukraine, whose fate Trump and Putin are negotiating without them. When, if not now, is the moment to become a political Union, a Union that acts swiftly, democratically and decisively? A Union that is not rudderless due to 27 CEOs not agreeing. Instead, we need a Union that draws its authority and decisions from its peoples and acts according to democratic majorities. The economic union is no longer enough. As Draghi said this week: to tackle all these existential issues from our economy, defense and democracy, we need to start acting more like a state. We need to bring our European democracies and peoples together under a political European Union.

 

We know that we keep on preaching the same sermon: It is the institutions, stupid! Our decision-making infrastructure is flawed, especially when it comes to foreign policy and defense. When Henry Kissinger asked whom to call, when wanting to speak to Europe, he had a point. And now the US have stopped asking this question, because they think Europe no longer matters. Let's prove them wrong! We have to build the foundation for a true European democracy that oversees a European army and can act on the global stage with her foreign and defense ministers.

 

Concretely, we are calling for:

-        immediately triggering the so called ''passerelle'' clause, allowing the Member States to vote on foreign affairs issues like sanctions by qualified majority instead of unanimity without treaty change, which can happen already tomorrow

-        activating article 7, removing the voting rights of autocrats who don't share our values, some aiding Putin's goals to destabilise Europe, like Viktor Orban

-        and above all, equipping the EU with a single EU defense minister, and an EU foreign minister with foreign and security decisions made by qualified majorities, speaking on behalf of a democratic European government, while

-        the decision to send troops on military deployments should be made by a fully legitimate European Parliamentary Democracy.

 

Let's finally give Europe one phone number to call! Forget about what the United States of America are doing. Instead, let's imagine what a United States of Europe can do!

 

The Volt delegation in the European Parliament,

Anna Strolenberg, Nela Riehl, Kai Tegethoff, Damian Boeselager and Reinier van Lanschot