Ahead of a harsh winter, Europe needs good news. Last spring, Emmanuel Macron floated the idea of launching a new institution, the European Political Community (EPC), which was supposed to be a kind of European G20.
It is true that Europeans need more inclusive and more European forums for debate.
From Iceland to Azerbaijan, the CPE connects almost all European countries via Switzerland, Liechtenstein, the Balkans, sulfur-rich Turkey and Ukraine.
So the leaders of 43 European countries gathered today in Prague for the first meeting of the European political community.
Because many countries disagree among themselves, the objectives of the meeting are weak. Even if a deal is announced in the energy sector, we will be happy to see no one show and all talk.
In the long term, European leaders want to set up cooperation mechanisms in security, education, energy and climate.
Obviously, Russia is one of the biggest dropouts from this CPE. He will not enter it until Vladimir Putin is in power.
Benefits
At the moment, CPE has two advantages.
First, it would allow European leaders to meet twice a year, strengthening communication between European leaders.
Second, it will help combat Putin’s simplistic propaganda of pretending that Russia is not a Western country, whose culture, history and population, concentrated west of the Urals, will turn it into a Western and European country.
CPE has big ambitions, especially in terms of security.
If Donald Trump and his fellow Republicans win the November elections to the US Congress or, worse, the 2024 presidency, America will cease to be a reliable partner.
CPE reflects the hope of a greater Europe. A bigger Europe that could easily compete with China and create a stronger pole of international relations.
nesting toy
This big Europe looks like a nesting doll. At the core, a few countries, including Germany and France, would actually be in control. All around, the other countries of the European Union will form a strong influence group. Finally, the rest of the European Union will create a kind of protection of the European Union, through which European countries wishing to join the European Union must pass.
In fact, this European architecture already exists. CPE formalizes it further.
Putin’s campaign will have a bigger problem accommodating some pro-Russian countries with highly permeable populations.
However, Putin’s failures help the European side, because no one wants to associate themselves with a loser.
Many forces have an interest in the failure of CPE. For now, it’s mostly a new toy.
