Relaunch of the Action Committee for the United States of Europe

Background Paper published for the First General Meeting of the Third Action Committee for the United States of Europe, Jean Monnet's House, October 2025

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In October 1955, Jean Monnet created the Action Committee for the United States of Europe, with the aim of relaunching the debate on European unity and translating it into concrete political action. After sixteen years of public service, Monnet chose to dedicate himself to this new project in order to provide a platform that would allow political parties and trade unions to work together towards further integration, persuading governments to transfer an increasing share of their powers to common European institutions.

Free from any subordination to governments, the Committee was officially a non-governmental organization, which operated to encourage unity and political coherence. For twenty years, the Committee played a decisive role in the main achievements of that time, including the UK’s accession to the EU and the adoption of direct elections for the European Parliament.

In 1981, Max Kohnstamm, one of Monnet’s closest collaborators, relaunched the Committee as a ginger group, in order to give new impetus to the process of European integration. The Second Committee made a significant contribution to the creation of the European Single Market and to the renewal of political momentum behind the development of the Community.

Seventy years after its foundation, the relaunch of the Action Committee seeks to renew its historic mission: to bring together political, social, and economic leaders committed to advancing European unity through concrete action. Today, Europe faces substantial challenges that require unity of purpose and political will: war at its borders, intense global competition, climate and technological transformation, and pressure on the very credibility of democracy. Overall, Europe is called upon to work on a more secure and perfect union in all its dimensions.

This background paper aims to summarize the main challenges facing the Union and key priorities, in order to stimulate collective reflection and develop concrete steps for action.

1. Economic Sovereignty and Competitiveness

Today’s European economic landscape is characterized by slow growth, low production and problematic strategic dependencies.

With reference to the Letta Report and the Draghi Report, the completion of the Single Market and the relaunch of our competitiveness are essential elements in ensuring the resilience and sustainability of our economy. Consequently, it is necessary to implement the proposals of the two reports, and, to this end, it is essential to set ambitious deadlines^[1] and clear intermediate milestones of action.

Some of the major priorities to be taken into consideration for common reflection are the following:

• Completing the economic and monetary union: the Single Market is currently fragmented. There is an urgent need to create a banking union, a capital markets union and a fiscal union. In particular, there is a need for a central fiscal capacity^[2] to intervene in a targeted manner to stabilize the economy, support structural change and provide public goods.
• Innovation and technology: the innovation gap needs to be closed, focusing primarily on innovative SMEs and start-ups and ensuring a favourable environment for them^[3] - a truly Single Market that allows them to scale up and attract adequate funding, particularly from a deep and unified capital market.
• Reducing dependencies: Europe is experiencing the limits of globalization, which had guaranteed gas from Russia, goods from China and security from the United States. In particular, there is an urgent need to reduce dependencies on critical raw materials, and to diversify supply chains and energy sources. In this regard, the “decarbonisation strategy” is not only about action against climate change, but also the best path towards Europe’s energy independence.Public and private investment: substantial public investment by the EU is needed, to be financed through the issuance of common debt, also for large-scale defence projects. Indeed, challenges faced by European member states are increasingly global and can no longer be tackled at the national level. Furthermore, private equity must also be considered as a more effective way of financing innovation projects.
• Climate change: the green transition is an essential part of our future. The EU is already a leader in green and clean technologies, so the green transition is not just an expense, but an opportunity for innovation, job creation and global leadership. The “decarbonisation strategy” thus represents a double opportunity, yet the “hard-to-abate” sectors must also be taken into account.

2. Common Defence and Security

Europe lives in a state of “un-peace”, characterized by conflict and instability at its borders, hybrid threats and historical alliances that have become uncertain.

With reference to the White Paper for Readiness 2030, in order for the EU to guarantee peace, it must be ready to deter any threat. However, European defence readiness has been weakened by decades of under-investment and by the fact that the debate on the subject is historically complex. Europe must now take action to strengthen its capacity to act collectively.

Some of the main priorities to be considered for common reflection are the following:

• Integration of defence industries and procurement: in order to develop an effective capacity to act together, two elements must be considered. On the one hand, there are huge capabilities gaps and standard differences between Member States. On the other, 80% of procurement has been secured by external suppliers in recent years. Member States must urgently pool their efforts to address gaps and harmonize their standards^[4], using the European Defence Agency to connect effectively. Furthermore, with reference to art. 41 TEU, it is also necessary to understand how funds can be spent.
• NATO and the EU: European security has benefited immensely from the historic NATO-EU partnership. NATO remains the cornerstone of the collective defence of Member States. This partnership must therefore be kept strong, but a clear division of roles must also be better established in order to ensure greater transatlantic balance and further European autonomy. In particular, the TEU foresees that the current CSDP is geared towards the establishment of a Common Defence.
• Other strategic partnerships: cooperation with other partners must also be considered in order to address defence challenges. In particular, Europe must focus on refining bilateral, regional and multilateral partnerships around the world to address a wider range of security issues in a mutually beneficial manner.
• Coalition of the Willing: with reference to the two previous points, this flexible, ad hoc group committed to cooperating on security and defence issues, with particular regard to support for Ukraine, should be taken into account by Europe. Furthermore, the issue of European nuclear deterrence, and therefore the role of France and the UK within a common framework, may also fall within the scope of this coalition.

3. Enlargements and Neighbourhood

Enlargement has always been one of the European Union’s most powerful tools for promoting peace, ensuring stability and anchoring democracy across the continent. Furthermore, enlargement is a geo-strategic investment that increases the EU’s political and economic weight on the world stage.

With reference to the Commission’s annual reports, enlargement must be accompanied by rigorous accession processes, well-prepared Member States and, where necessary, institutional reforms to preserve the Union’s capacity to act effectively.

Neighbourhood policies are now even more necessary given the tensions and conflicts at the borders and the potential impacts on migration and supply chains.

Some of the major priorities to be taken into account for a joint debate are the following:

• Defining the Union’s capacity to absorb new members: the enlargement process must be realistic, merit-based, and politically credible. On the one hand, the EU must clearly define its absorption capacity (necessary institutional, budgetary and political adjustments). On the other, candidates such as Ukraine, Moldova and the Western Balkans must advance on the basis of clear criteria, progress in reforms and alignments with EU values.
• Geopolitical EU: the Union must act not only as a market but also as a geopolitical actor, shaping its own environment through strategic partnerships and development cooperation. In particular, the Neighbourhood Policy Framework to the East and the South is an extension of EU’s internal security. Looking to the near future, the EU must pay particular attention to relations with its key neighbours in the Mediterranean, Africa and the Middle East.

 4. Democracy, Rights and Values

Democracy is Europe’s founding promise, but today it is under pressure from both internal and external forces that are testing its resilience. Populism and the resurgence of authoritarian tendencies, as well as the spread of disinformation, threaten the very foundations of the European project. To preserve its legitimacy and unity, the Union must renew its democratic model firstly by strengthening the Rule of Law.

Some of the main priorities to be taken into consideration for common debate are the following:

• Safeguarding the Rule of Law and defending fundamental rights within the Union: the EU’s credibility depends on the integrity of its legal and democratic order. Monitoring and conditionality mechanisms and their application need to be strengthened to ensure that violations are addressed in a consistent and transparent manner.
• Countering populism, authoritarian tendencies and disinformation: all these phenomena pose a serious threat to the stability of the European project. The EU must therefore commit to supporting elements such as media pluralism, independent journalism and digital literacy, which are fundamental steps in protecting the democratic public sphere. In this public sphere, citizens must be involved in shared debates and cultural and educational initiatives, so that they can foster a stronger sense of belonging. Universities, cultural networks, and youth exchanges such as Erasmus+ are essential tools for building a generation that feels European.

5. Political Union and Treaty Reform

All of Europe’s current challenges - from economic resilience to defence, enlargement and democracy - ultimately converge on a crucial question: how to deepen political integration?^[5] The necessary changes involve the full implementation of the Lisbon Treaty, potential treaty reforms and further integration towards political union.

However, in this regard, it is worth bearing in mind the difficulty of implementing treaty reforms and the political sensitivity surrounding them. In order to accompany the necessary and urgent changes, and not to block the processes, there must be a real willingness to relaunch Europe, taking alternative paths if necessary.

In particular, some of the crucial point to be taken into account for discussion are the following:

• Changing methods: art. 48 of the TEU provides a legal basis for reforming the treaties, but its standard procedure requires unanimity. There is also the possibility of “changing methods”: reference can be made to the historical precedent of the Single European Act of 1985, achieved though the principle of mutual recognition and with a shift from unanimity to majority.
• Alternative but available options: in order to avoid operational deadlocks and enable joint action to be taken to address the challenges listed above, the EU may consider the possibility of enhanced cooperation allowing groups of Member States to move forward together in specific areas, setting examples for other to join later. The coalition that may be created can promote pioneering initiatives, acting as a testing ground for future policies at Union level.
• Defining the scope and ambition of a future political union: every step towards greater European integration requires reasonable objectives and the definition of the main difficulties^[6] in achieving it. Thus, it is necessary to define the scope and ambition of the future political union so that it is effectively capable of acting, intervening in economic, social and geopolitical processes, and preventing fragmentation.

6. The Global Role of the EU

The international landscape is increasingly marked by uncertainty, polarization and fragmentation. The vision of a rules-based multilateral order, once grounded in shared values and stable alliances, is giving way to a world defined by power competition, continental empires and national interests. Traditional partnerships are being redefined, and new actors, particularly in the East and Global South, are shaping the direction of the emerging order through their demographic weight, economic growth and political agency. In this new context, the European Union must assert itself as a coherent global actor, defending its values, protecting its interests, and shaping a new framework for multilateral cooperation grounded in law, sustainability and democracy.

Some of the crucial points to be taken into consideration for common reflection are the following:

• Coalition of the liberal democracies: considering the illiberal trends spreading throughout the world but also within some European countries, the EU must deepen its strategic cooperation with liberal partners, such as the UK, Canada, Australia and Japan. This coalition should preserve the liberal model of open societies, trade, and democratic governance, reaffirming the need for the Rule of Law and respect for international law.
• Reforming multilateralism: as a value rooted in its very foundation, the EU must work to protect multilateralism and to adapt multilateral institutions to the current reality. In particular, the EU should take a leading role in reforming the UN so that it reflects new global dynamics and ensures greater representativeness and accountability. In doing so, it should be considered that while the UN Security Council faces paralysis, the General Assembly and regional organizations such as the African Union, CELAC, and ASEAN, gain importance as arenas for diplomacy and consensus-building.
• The EU as a climate leader: Europe’s credibility as a global player also rests on its leadership in climate action and sustainable development. Therefore, the EU must continue to lead on COP commitments, ensuring an inclusive and just green transition, and mobilizing funding and energy to take climate action.

Closing note

Returning to the origins of the European project is useful at a time of great democratic debate on the future of the Union. The relaunch of the Action Committee is not only a commemoration of Jean Monnet’s vision, but also a commitment to shaping the very next stage of European integration.

The Committee’s work was characterized by extraordinary determination and a combination of clarity and simplicity of political vision. Today, the task is to build a more secure Union, capable of ensuring peace, prosperity, democracy and global relevance for future generations. To do so, working in the wake of previous Committees is necessary, being ambitious, forward looking and “stubborn” in daily efforts. We believe in the work we can d together, promoting debate, translating challenges into concrete action and driving the political will to move forward in European integration.

Bazoches-sur-Guyonne, 16 October 2025

^[1] The idea is to set goals as ambitious as the “Objective 1992” (proposed by Max Kohnstamm and Jacques Delors), in the spirit of the 1985 European Council of Milan. The Single Market and the Euro had tight deadlines, required ambitious efforts and were accompanied by strong political commitment.

^[2] Messori M. and Buti M., “A central fiscal capacity to tackle stagflation”, CEPR, 2022.

^[3] In this regard, supporting the two ideas presented in the Letta Report: the creation of a 28th regime to ensure a European code of business law and the development of the 5th freedom to enhance research, innovation and education

^[4] In doing so, it should be useful to look at the Ukrainian experience and learn from its adapted capacity.

^[5] Binetti A. and Tabellini G., “Is Europe Ready for further Political Integration?”, IEP Bocconi University, 2024.

^[6] Binetti A. and Tabellini G., “Is Europe Ready for further Political Integration?”, IEP Bocconi University, 2024.