From Euractiv | By Anna Echterhoff and Sandro Gozi

2022 will be “a turning point” for Europe. The winds of change blowing from some member states are bringing the EU into a new era, write Anna Echterhoff and Sandro Gozi.

Anna Echterhoff is Secretary General of the Union of European Federalists

Sandro Gozi is a Renew Europe MEP and President of the Union of European Federalists

2021 has been a year of transition in the European Union (EU) with decisions of federal scope such as the Recovery Plan and the Next Generation EU, the successful purchase and distribution of vaccines, the COVID-19 Certificate and the approval of the Multiannual Financial Framework 2021-2027.

Germany has just turned the page on Angela Merkel’s 16 years of leadership, France is bracing itself for an uncertain presidential election in the spring, and in Italy Draghi will continue as prime minister. Merkel’s departure leaves a vacuum that Macron, Scholz and Draghi are trying to fill.

GERMANY

In Germany there is now a chancellor, Olaf Scholz, who proposes a paradigm shift in his country to invest in social cohesion, who proposes “moving towards a federal Europe” and who is open to reforming the eurozone’s stability and growth pact.

The change of tone in the new German government is evident, they “want to increase Europe’s strategic sovereignty”, aiming at developing the EU’s own capacity to act in a global context and in important strategic areas such as, for example, energy supply, health, import of raw materials, technology… With the confirmation of the German position, we might see important advances towards a federal Union as they seem keen to facilitate reforms in this sense.

ITALY

Mario Draghi will remain as the country’s prime minister, securing an unprecedented influence on key European policies.

Significantly, Chancellor Scholz included Rome among the capitals he first visited shortly after succeeding Angela Merkel. With French President Emmanuel Macron, the harmony is exceptional. Together they signed the Quirinal Treaty in November, along the lines of the Elysée Treaty signed between Paris and Berlin in 1963 to increase cooperation in many strategic sectors such as defence.

Macron and Draghi have just co-signed an article in the Financial Times calling for a stronger, more sustainable and fairer Europe, a sign of a growing alliance between two of Europe’s most dynamic leaders.

FRANCE

French voters are heading to the polls in late April. President Emmanuel Macron is currently polling first among all candidates and his victory would mean that France would still have a pro-European leader looking to work with Germany and Italy to reform the Union.

The French presidency of the Council of the European Union will also mark this new chapter, in which Macron will defend a powerful and sovereign Europe, with the reform of the stability pact and the development of the Union’s strategic sovereignty as his political priorities.

Driven by COVID-19, this has made it possible to take historic steps forward in the integration project and to strengthen the role of this type of mandate, which has had fairly limited room for manoeuvre since the Treaty of Lisbon.

This was evidenced by its drive to develop a joint vaccination strategy that was a cornerstone of the European response to the pandemic by ensuring its equitable distribution to all EU citizens. But also the impetus he gave to put in place the most ambitious recovery plan in EU history, that could be the embryo of a European fiscal arm.

The stars are aligning for real EU reform, we believe that decisive steps will be taken in the federal logic as we understand that there is an agreement between the main political forces, especially between the virtuous triangle that would leave behind years of paralysis and hesitation.

We must now take advantage of the Conference on the Future of Europe, which was launched on 9 May 2021 in Strasbourg with civil society and citizens, in order to move forward a more sovereign, democratic and stronger EU.

The Citizens’ have spoken, they want to overcome the veto vote in the Council, to give the right of legislative initiative of the EP, re-launch the process for a real EU Constitution, directly vote European political parties through transnational lists and introduce new forms of direct democratic citizens participation.

The new pro-European alliance will support the citizens’ petitions, pushing to strengthen European democracy and facilitating the much needed reforms.

We expect, and as UEF are committed to, in particular, the start of a further deepening of the European Union and its transformation into a true European federation. Let’s revive the Ventotene legacy and its spirit, building a united Europe of freedom, equality and human rights in which each and every one of us can say “I belong”.”

As stated in the last line of the Ventotene Manifesto, the road won’t be easy, but UEF will keep striving to develop Spinelli’s ideas.

UEF President Sandro GOZI: “We must get inspired and revive the spirit of the Ventotene Manifesto to push for a new European democratic transformation.”

In 1941, while imprisoned on Ventotene island just off the coast of Italy, the intellectuals Altiero Spinelli, Ernesto Rossi and Eugenio Colorni penned ‘For a Free and United Europe’, a founding text urging for the creation of a united Europe built on federalist principles. This document, also known as the Ventotene Manifesto, was distributed among the European resistance thanks to Ursula Hirschmann, a German anti-fascist activist who managed to smuggle it from the island. In January 1944, a mimeographed clandestine edition of the Manifesto appeared in Rome.

All they had the courage, the imagination, and the irreverent genius to look up beyond the horizon of the present moment. They had the courage to imagine Europe and a future world in which civil rights and fraternity among all people would be at the center of social life and politics.

Back then, the authors of the Ventotene Manifesto called for “new people” to realise a free and united Europe, but, after 81 years, it is still an ongoing process to build a European identity united in shared values and solidarity through the founding of a political union of the 27 member states. Elements of this are visible, as in the unity that has been demonstrated during the COVID crisis.

We must now take advantage of the Conference on the Future of Europe, which was launched on 9 May 2021 in Strasbourg with civil society and citizens, in order to move forward a more sovereign, democratic and stronger EU. We expect, and as UEF are committed to, in particular, the start of a further deepening of the European Union and its transformation into a true European federation.

On the 81 Anniversary of the Ventotene Manifesto, we, the federalists, want to revive the Ventotene legacy and its spirit building a united Europe of freedom, equality and human rights in which each and every one of us can say "I belong”." As stated in the last line of the Ventotene Manifesto, the road won’t be easy, but UEF will keep striving to develop Spinelli’s ideas.

European Parliament (EP) President David SASSOLI has passed away at age 65.

Born in Florence on 30 May 1956, SASSOLI studied political science before starting work as a newspaper and news agency journalist.

The father of two began working for national broadcaster RAI in 1992, rising through the ranks to become a familiar face for millions of Italians, presenting the evening news on the main channel, of which he also became deputy-director.

Mr. SASSOLI, a member of Italy’s center-left Democratic Party, has been a member of the EP since 2009. He was elected vice president five years later and has led the body since 2019.

As Parliament President, SASSOLI was a largely conciliatory voice, working to help advance the agenda of von der Leyen, the Commission’s first woman President, including the European Green Deal, the ambitious package of measures to combat climate change.

During his mandate SASSOLI called for a new “political pact” with other institutions to give shape and content to the request of a new Europe, improving the Spitzenkandidat process, enhancing the Parliament’s voice and powers and enacting reforms and treaty revision to strengthen European democracy.

“We want the Conference on the Future of Europe (CoFoE) to open up a new phase, a phase of participation, but also of change. To change the rules, because we have seen in this year and a half that there cannot be taboos. European democracy must be more efficient and effective. The European Parliament is very ambitious on this.”, said the EP President SASSOLI at the European Youth Event in the framework of the CoFoE.

As a committed European, he always believed that our future lies in a democratic and sovereign Europe, and pushed for a new European democratic transformation.

In 2020, Sandro GOZI, MEP for Renew Europe and President of the Union of European Federalist (UEF), handed over the nearly 1,200 signatures of the '1,000 x Federal Europe' campaign to David SASSOLI. With President SASSOLI, we shared the need and urgency to provide the Union with new genuine own resources for the European revival.

That same year, the UEF sent an open letter to MEPs calling on the EP to propose the required amendment to the Treaties and asking the other EU institutions to commence the related process of treaty revision. The EP President thanked UEF for the commitment to the European project, he stressed on the need to have a successful CoFoE and on the key role that the Parliament, Civil Society and European Youth has on it.

“UEF is deeply saddened by the terrible loss of a great European and an outstanding President of the European Parliament. He has been a member of the Movimento Federalista Europeo in Rome, since Mr. SASSOLI was a convinced federalist, a champion of European democracy, values and integration. We commend his efforts to build a strong house of European democracy, and express our sincere condolences to his family, friends, and colleagues. Riposa in pace.”, said UEF President and MEP Sandro GOZI.

Today is a special day for us all.

Today is the 75th anniversary of the formal foundation of the Union of European Federalists.

We celebrate this day with pride and emotion.

75 years passed, but our values are unaltered, as strong as on the first day.

According to the World Health Organisation, two million Europeans may die between November 2021 and March 2022 in the European region. The new Omicron variant and the deterioration of the general health situation in Europe in the autumn of 2021 show that the strategy to fight against the Covid19 must necessarily be European and global.

As long as the majority of the world's population is not vaccinated, all people are at risk and dangerous mutations will continue to appear. In the face of the sixth wave, the right to free movement must also be preserved. Thus, it is essential to take coordinated measures at European level.

Despite lack of hard competences at European level, the EU succeeded in developing a strategy to face the COVID crisis and responded to the main concerns of the European citizens during the pandemic, with the launch of the Health Union advocated by UEF and the common purchase of vaccines.

Furthermore, with more than 725 million EU Digital COVID Certificates issued since July 2021, the EU restored the freedom of movement in the EU, a fundamental right according to the EU Charter for EU citizens and people living in the EU but also for third country nationals travelling to and from EU countries. The EU managed to set an international standard facilitating people mobility as currently 25 third countries from 5 continents are connected to the EU system and 35 applied to be connected.

The UEF welcomes the initiative of the European Commission recommending a third dose of the Covid 19 vaccine made on November 25, 2021 for the entire population and its inclusion in the EU Digital COVID certificate.

However, it is urgent to further strengthen the common European strategy against COVID, since vaccination rates are low in many Member States, and sizeable pockets of population still refuse to be vaccinated.

For this reason, we propose to the European institutions the adoption or promotion of the following measures:

• Preserve the freedom of movement, a fundamental right for EU citizens and the functioning of the Schengen area by revising the rules for reintroduction of internal border controls in order to avoid the systematic and unnecessary re-establishment of unilateral cross-border barriers in Europe and deploy common border approaches with third countries.
• Develop a coherent and prompt common policy reply to address the urgent health crisis by setting a comprehensive set of measures, based on epidemiological evidence, to be implemented at a European level in close cooperation with local authorities.
• Recommend to Member States the vaccination of the age group 5 to 11 years, already authorized by the European Medicines Agency on 25 November 2021
• Strengthen research and innovation policies for developing new vaccines, including the continuous update of the current vaccines to adapt to dangerous mutations, and supporting the industrial expansion of vaccine production capacity to supply the EU and the rest of the world.
• Develop a European Health Semester, including the eventuality of periodical Covid-19 vaccination for all, on a permanent basis.
• Recommend to Member States to require the EU vaccination certificate to access places of work, leisure, educational centers, public transport and travel.
• Requirement of the vaccine certificate for cross-border travel, topped up of negative PCR for travelling through EU external borders.
• Support the WHO initiative for a Global Health Treaty with clear conditions for the prevention of future pandemics, coherent measures for crisis intervention, vaccine production and global distribution.
• Reinforcement of the Covax initiative, through a Global Health Pact, financed with extraordinary issuance of special drawing rights from the IMF and donations from developed countries. To this end, immediate convening of an international donor conference by the EU and the United Nations.
• Further support and develop measures to respond to the threat posed by disinformation, misinformation and foreign influence operations, related to the COVID-19 pandemic and vaccination procedure.

After successive waves, it is also imperative to strengthen a European strategy in the medium term, in order to achieve when necessary full vaccination of Europeans and on a global scale. We also call on the Conference on the Future of Europe to strengthen the EU's health competencies, through the necessary reform of the Treaties.

One year ago, the Union of European Federalists (UEF) embarked on our Democracy is Europe: Remember to Revive journey across the Baltics and Central and Eastern Europe. Two main ideas were behind this: on one hand, to raise awareness about the central role of European values in the revolutions of 1989-1991; on the other hand, to encourage a reflection on the future of Europe, European democracy and the Rule of Law.

As part of this project, UEF launched the “1989-1991: the fall of communist regimes: what was the idea of Europe behind the Central-Eastern European and Baltic countries’ democratic transition?” essay contest. Young people, aged from 18 to 25, were encouraged to express their thoughts on the peaceful revolutions and transitions that characterized these European areas. The driving idea of this contest was not only to promote the importance that European principles played back then, but also to explore what is their impact and state of play nowadays in those parts of Europe.

During the Democracy is Europe Final Conference on 2-3 December in Brussels, the essay contest results were announced.

Mr Gustavo Álvarez, 23-year-old student from Spain, was awarded first place, followed by his Georgian fellow Mr Lasha Svanishsvili, 22 years old, and his polish fellow Ms Wiktoria Skrzypecka, 19 years old.

You can read Mr Gustavo Álvarez’s essay below.

1989-1991 the fall of communist regimes: what was the idea of Europe behind the Central-Eastern European and Baltic countries’ democratic transition?

by Gustavo Álvarez

Assuming a causal relation between Europe as a unified region and the revolutions and consequent democratic transitions in CEE and Baltic (CEEB) countries distorts the values and motivations behind these events. Framing conditions the comprehension of the argument. Therefore, it’s essential to draw the line between understanding CEEB democratic transitions through a pro-European collective ingenuity and a sociopolitical tool to avoid the return of the communist system. In the end, establishing a clear differentiation between these two perspectives aims to prove their correlation, but complementarity. It’s said, first we should acknowledge the values of the revolutions and democratic transitions in CEEB countries as a direct response in opposition to the communist regime. Only then, we could argue a shared set of ideas as the common denominator of Europe’s conception among the CEEB region.

In this case, before addressing the so-called “idea of Europe” we need to characterize how CEEB countries prevented themselves from a violent and illiterate Soviet revival. First, opposition intellectual movements appeared, inspired by political martyrs, such as Jan Palach, Romas Kalanta or Imre Nagy. These activist groups were known for their underground organization and were publicly represented by one or two individuals. For instance, the Charter 77 with Václav Havel or the Helsinki Group with Larisa Bogoraz. The revolutions they organized were non-violent, individual freedom oriented and communicated through art. Some examples could be the Singing Revolution in Estonia, or the massive demonstrations during the Velvet Revolution. This innovative way of fighting against the communist establishment represented loyalty to the ideal of freedom, sacrifice for the people and union against the oppressor. These values were translated into peaceful and democratic transitions that helped to expel new communist aspirations and consolidate the germ for a liberal system all over the CEEB region.

The above mentioned values allowed the possibility for CEEB countries to develop a democratic political system and a free market economy. These values were precedent to any European aspiration, since they first needed to develop as a nation in order to enter the EU and NATO. It’s at this stage where the “idea of Europe” enters the liberal democratic transition among CEEB states. Since the emergence of the European Union, Europe has shifted its identity from a liberal democratic reference to a utilitarian body for agreed interdependency. In other words, CEEB countries implemented national policies based on EU “association agreements” during the 90s because of the economic, legal and geopolitical advantages of joining the EU (Sierp, 2015). Europe was the means for CEEB countries to consolidate parliamentary democracy and free market economy. Europe was not the goal because it was the catalyzer. It’s said, long-term democratic transitions in CEEB countries were based on the values they inherited from the revolutions and materialized by EU’s economic resources and political advocacy. In consequence, Europe has always been perceived as the necessary economic and political tool to achieve a proper democratic transition.

During democratic transitions, Europe was portrayed as valuable in itself, but merely useful for developing functioning liberal democracies among CEEB countries. Such conceptualization caused an indirect lack of unification between CEEB national revolution values (peace, freedom and intellect) and European democratic identity. Precisely, it’s this weak, might even nonexistent, ideological bond between Europe and CEEB states which enables anti-European narratives to strengthen. The moment economic or political instability appears, Euroscepticism spreads because Europe’s liberal idiosyncrasy was not embedded, along with economic and political support, during CEEB democratic transitions. For instance, the current democracy backsliding, due to massive support to populist and anti-European movements among CEEB countries, shows there is a high-percentage of the population, mainly in the CEE region, that don’t perceive Europe’s democratic values as their own. Ultimately, the absence of the abovementioned European-CEEB ideological connection raises ignorant societies, since citizens don’t understand that rejecting European institutions is highly counterproductive due to negative economic and political effects within their country.

Following the above mentioned arguments, Europe should acknowledge that, although CEEB countries are part of the EU, a democratic transition is not fully achieved until there is a crystallization of European liberal democratic values (Cianetti, Dawson, & Hanley, 2018). In simple terms, while there’s still European countries where the majority of citizens use their vote to empower leaders who depict Europe as the enemy, a stable long-term democratic transition it’s not completed. Europe has become an effective economic tool for market and political integration, while failing at being identified as the democratic ideal in CEEB countries. Accordingly, now more than ever, it’s essential to focus on the role of the EU as a liberal democratic safeguard in order to build a long-term ideological nexus with CEEB former revolution values.

The idea of Europe behind the Central-Eastern European and Baltic countries’ democratic transition was mainly utilitarian. The idea of Europe is still under construction. Democratic transitions in CEEB countries will only be fully successful if their population empathize with the idea of Europe as a liberal democratic safeguard, as much as they do with the values of their national revolutions. The role of the EU as an economic and political catalyzer for integration needs to be complemented by an ideological bond between European and national political values. As Václav Havel (2018, p. 92) asked: “Do not these ‘post-democratic’ relationships of immediate personal trust and the informal rights of individuals based on them come out of the background of all those commonly shared difficulties?” Let’s remember the past to revive our common objectives, remain unified under polarization, keep our intellect sharp and be loyal to the values that granted our freedom.

References

• Cianetti, L., Dawson, J., & Hanley, S. (2018). Rethinking “democratic backsliding” in Central. East European Politics, 34(3), 243-256.
• Havel, V. (2018). The Power of the Powerless. London: Vintage Classics.
• Sierp, A. (2015). Democratic Change in. Luxembourg: European Parliamentary Research Service.

We would like to take again the opportunity to sincerely thank all the young people that take their time and effort to contribute with their essays, as well as those who have supported our project.

During the Final Conference of Democracy is Europe UEF also engaged the participants in the #DemocracyisEurope Competition asking them their ideas on the future of Europe: how to improve the EU in the future?

FIRST AWARDED ESSAY

1989-1991 the fall of communist regimes: what was the idea of Europe behind the Central-Eastern European and Baltic countries’ democratic transition?

by Gustavo Álvarez

Assuming a causal relation between Europe as a unified region and the revolutions and consequent democratic transitions in CEE and Baltic (CEEB) countries distorts the values and motivations behind these events. Framing conditions the comprehension of the argument. Therefore, it’s essential to draw the line between understanding CEEB democratic transitions through a pro-European collective ingenuity and a sociopolitical tool to avoid the return of the communist system. In the end, establishing a clear differentiation between these two perspectives aims to prove their correlation, but complementarity. It’s said, first we should acknowledge the values of the revolutions and democratic transitions in CEEB countries as a direct response in opposition to the communist regime. Only then, we could argue a shared set of ideas as common denominator of Europe’s conception among the CEEB region.

In this case, before addressing the so-called “idea of Europe” we need to characterize how CEEB countries prevented themselves from a violent and illiterate Soviet revival. First, opposition intellectual movements appeared, inspired by political martyrs, such as Jan Palach, Romas Kalanta or Imre Nagy. These activist groups were known for its underground organization and were publicly represented by one or two individuals. For instance, the Charter 77 with Václav Havel or the Helsinki Group with Larisa Bogoraz. The revolutions they organized were non-violent, individual freedom oriented and communicated through art. Some examples could be the Singing Revolution in Estonia, or the massive demonstrations during the Velvet Revolution. This innovative way of fighting against the communist establishment represented loyalty to the ideal of freedom, sacrifice for the people and union against the oppressor. These values were translated into peaceful and democratic transitions that helped to expel new communist aspirations and consolidate the germ for a liberal system all over the CEEB region.

The abovementioned values allowed the possibility for CEEB countries to develop a democratic political system and a free market economy. These values were precedent to any European aspiration, since they first needed to develop as a nation in order to enter the EU and NATO. It’s at this stage where the “idea of Europe” enters the liberal democratic transition among CEEB states. Since the emergence of the European Union, Europe has shifted its identity from a liberal democratic reference to a utilitarian body for agreed interdependency. In other words, CEEB countries implemented national policies based on EU “association agreements” during the 90s because of the economic, legal and geopolitical advantages of joining the EU (Sierp, 2015). Europe was the mean for CEEB countries to consolidate parliamentary democracy and free market economy. Europe was not the goal because it was the catalyzer. It’s said, long-term democratic transitions in CEEB countries were based on the values they inherited from the revolutions and materialized by EU’s economic resources and political advocacy. In consequence, Europe has always been perceived as the necessary economic and political tool to achieve a proper democratic transition.

During democratic transitions, Europe was portrayed as valuable in itself, but merely useful for developing functioning liberal democracies among CEEB countries. Such conceptualization caused an indirect lack of unification between CEEB national revolution values (peace, freedom and intellect) and European democratic identity. Precisely, it’s this weak, might even inexistent, ideological bond between Europe and CEEB states which enables anti-European narratives to strengthen. The moment economic or political instability appears, Euroscepticism spreads because Europe’s liberal idiosyncrasy was not embedded, along with economic and political support, during CEEB democratic transitions. For instance, the current democracy backsliding, due to massive support to populist and anti-European movements among CEEB countries, shows there is a high-percentage of the population, mainly in the CEE region, that don’t perceive Europe’s democratic values as own. Ultimately, the absence of the abovementioned European-CEEB ideological connection raises ignorant societies, since citizens don’t understand that rejecting European institutions is highly counterproductive due to negative economic and political effects within their country.

Following the abovementioned arguments, Europe should acknowledge that, although CEEB countries are part of the EU, a democratic transition is not fully achieved until there is a crystallization of European liberal democratic values (Cianetti, Dawson, & Hanley, 2018). In simple terms, while there’s still European countries where majority of citizens use their vote to empower leaders who depict Europe as the enemy, a stable long-term democratic transition it’s not completed. Europe has become an effective economic tool for market and political integration, while failing at being identified as the democratic ideal in CEEB countries. Accordingly, now more than ever, it’s essential to focus on the role of the EU as a liberal democratic safeguard in order to build a long-term ideological nexus with CEEB former revolution values.

The idea of Europe behind the Central-Eastern European and Baltic countries’ democratic transition was mainly utilitarian. The idea of Europe is still under construction. Democratic transitions in CEEB countries will only be fully successful if their population empathize with the idea of Europe as a liberal democratic safeguard, as much as they do with the values of their national revolutions. The role of the EU as an economic and political catalyzer for integration needs to be complemented by an ideological bond between European and national political values. As Václav Havel (2018, p. 92) asked: “Do not these ‘post-democratic’ relationships of immediate personal trust and the informal rights of individuals based on them come out of the background of all those commonly shared difficulties?” Let’s remember the past to revive our common objectives, remain unified under polarization, keep our intellect sharp and be loyal to the values that granted our freedom.

References

Cianetti, L., Dawson, J., & Hanley, S. (2018). Rethinking “democratic backsliding” in Central. East European Politics, 34(3), 243-256.

Havel, V. (2018). The Power of the Powerless. London: Vintage Classics.

Sierp, A. (2015). Democratic Change in. Luxembourg: European Parliamentary Research Service.

SECOND AWARDED ESSAY by Lash Svanishvili

Pier Virgilio DASTOLI, President of the Italian Committee of the European Movement (CIME), writes:

“The Quirinal Treaty between Italy and France will be signed in Rome on 25 November by Emmanuel MACRON and Mario DRAGHI.

The negotiations, launched in early 2018 by the Gentiloni government at a meeting chaired by Italian Minister GOZI and French Minister LOISEAU, and the drafting of the project had been entrusted to a group of six "wise men" including Italians Franco BASSANINI, Marco PIANTINI and Paola SEVERINO.

Among the priority themes of the agreement, emphasis is placed on research, culture, industry and defence, stressing the need to implement means such as structured enhanced cooperation in the event that unanimous decisions impede joint progress. After the Italian elections in 2018 and the formation of the Conte I government with Lega and Movimento 5 Stelle, the negotiations had been frozen, they were not resumed by the Conte II government due to the pandemic, and they were only relaunched by the Draghi government. They will finally be concluded on 25 November.

Many things have happened in the meantime in Europe and between Italy and France, including the start of the Conference on the Future of Europe, with the French and Italian willingness to consider the possibility of going beyond the Lisbon Treaty signed 14 years ago, at a time when the conditions of the world and of Europe were radically different from those of today.

This raises the question of "what to do" if some governments are not willing to negotiate and accept a revision of the Lisbon Treaty, and therefore which project, method and timetable to consider in order to overcome the obstacle of the Convention on the basis of Article 48 of the TFEU (Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union), which requires the convening of a diplomatic conference, the unanimous agreement of the national governments and the unanimity of national rectifications.

Within the platform on the future of Europe set up in September 2019 at the CNEL (National Counsil for Economic and Labour) by the Italian European Movement, the issue of differentiated integration has been discussed several times, a subject on which the Institute of International Affairs is working within the framework of a European project, while the European Movement has urged the Spinelli Group of the European Parliament to revive the essentially constituent method that the European Parliament had adopted for the elaboration of its draft constitution of 14 February 1984.

These are questions that the Quirinal Treaty should not escape, also in view of the conclusions of the Conference on the Future of Europe that could take place in May 2022 after the French presidential elections on 10 and 24 April 2022.

It should be recalled that the idea of a Quirinal Treaty was launched under the inspiration of the Elysée Treaty signed in the past between France and Germany and that a proposal has recently been put forward for a Franco-Italian-German initiative that would bring together the priorities of the two treaties after the formation of the new German government and in view of the conclusions of the Conference on the Future of Europe and the reopening of work on the reform of the European Union."

Sandro GOZI, former Italian Secretary of State for European Affairs, now MEP (Renew Europe) and President of the Union of European Federalists (UEF) writes:

“We are on the eve of an important step that will give France and Italy a leading role in Europe and a new leading role in meeting global challenges. The signing of the Quirinal Treaty will ensure a solid and structured basis for making the relationship between our two countries work, creating a series of working groups and more fluid exchanges.

There is today a great political convergence between Rome and Paris on European and international priorities. In the context of such a favourable relationship as the one established between President DRAGHI and President Emmanuel MACRON, it is therefore important to seal this special relationship with a treaty whose signature will give more strength to Italy and France to engage in joint action at the European and global level. There may still be some differences of opinion or disputes, but we will now have a set of new diplomatic tools and political mechanisms to prevent and resolve them. If we European states compete with each other, we all lose. This is why it is essential that Italy and France work together, hand in hand, starting with the development of the Conference on the Future of Europe, which will have to be followed by important reforms of the European Union.”

These two statements, reproduced here with the consent of their authors, were originally written on 17 November 2021 for the members of the "Italian Platform for the Conference on the Future of Europe.

You can read the French version here.

You can read the Italian version here.

Dear federalist friend,

As you may already know, UEF is implementing its project “#makeEuropeBloom: the Time is Now!” not only as a way to accompany and raise awareness of the Conference on the Future of Europe (CoFoE), but also to contribute to building the New European Bauhaus.

Officially launched on Europe Day this year, #makeEuropeBloom consists primarily of painting murals at different peripheral European locations. Today, we are happy to share with you the video of the making of and the final results of our first artwork in cooperation with Marest Studio, Generalitat Valenciana and Ajuntament de València in Valencia (Spain), which was painted in parallel to UEF’s XXVII European Congress.

PROJECT BACKGROUND

UEF took on from the very beginning the fourfold challenge to make the European institutions commit to launch the Conference on the Future of Europe (which finally happened on 9 May, Europe Day); to ensure the institutional commitment to study with respect and attention the transformative proposals of European citizens and civil society; to advocate for this Conference to represent a real opportunity for the reform of the Treaties and the European institutions; and, finally, to involve and inform as much as possible the European citizens on this first major pan-European democratic exercise.

As a response to a call for proposals by the Directorate-General for Communication (DG COMM) of the European Parliament, “#makeEuropeBloom: the Time is Now!” is an ambitious and audacious artistic project. “It is no coincidence that the time slot during which the project is being implemented matches the time span of the CoFoE. The aim of our project is to directly address European citizens in their living environment. Its very nature strives to actively accompany the CoFoE by helping to convince citizens to express themselves in this pan-European democratic process and bring forward the reformations that citizens are demanding towards a more democratic and sovereign Europe”, says Sandro GOZI, UEF President.

In addition, #makeEuropeBloom has also been devised as a response to the invitation “to set up a New European Bauhaus”, that Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Commission, launched in her State of the Union Address of 16 September 2020. “I want NextGenerationEU to kickstart a European renovation wave and make our Union a leader in the circular economy. But this is not just an environmental or economic project: it needs to be a new cultural project for Europe. Every movement has its own look and feel. And we need to give our systemic change its own distinct aesthetic – to match style with sustainability. This is why we will set up a new European Bauhaus – a co-creation space where architects, artists, students, engineers, designers work together to make that happen”.

Arts to illuminate the European project
“UEF, combining arts and politics, strives with this project to remind all the peoples of Europe that the European integration project aims to develop their common living space and help them realise that their exchanges go far beyond the cold economic sphere, as a follow-up of the long lasting European common civilisation, by leaning on the citizens’ hearts, minds, senses and artistic sensibilities”, explains François MENNERAT, UEF Executive Board member and legal representative of the project.

A hand out to “lay” citizens
“The intention here is to reach out to those persons who appear to be persistently far away from the European perspective and from the debates triggered around the future of Europe. It thus targets, not the big capitals or the privileged quarters of urban centres, but rather deprived or peripheral areas that are still away from the European conversations. It seeks to involve those who live there, starting with the preparation of the events, in full co-operation with the local authorities and the elected representatives”, concludes François MENNERAT.

To reach its goal, UEF distributed ahead of our presence in Valencia an online survey, in which organisations of all kinds, from political parties, trade unions, neighbourhood councils to individual citizens contributed with their ideas and responses on the symbols, shapes and colours that could best capture their feelings and emotions about European democracy, which was the central theme of the pictorial work, and the future of Europe.

“With this mural, which will have a duration of at least seven years, not only has it been possible to create an innovative language by and for the EU from a contemporary and urban perspective, but it has also led to a reflection widely shared by ordinary citizens and sectors linked to education, tourism, culture, industry and think tanks on the EU and its institutions. This is how we believe we have set an example on how the future of Europe should be built”, states Alejandra ALMARCHA, UEF Secretariat Director.

The inauguration of our mural in Valencia was attended by neighbours of La Plata, an area between the sophisticated City of Arts and Sciences of Valencia and a modest working-class neighbourhood, as well as UEF President & MEP Sandro GOZI, urban artist Antonyo MAREST, UEF Vice-President & MEP Domènec RUIZ DEVESA, Vice-President Luisa TRUMELLINI, Secretary-General Anna ECHTERHOFF and contemporary art curator Fran PICAZO.

Among the prominent European and local personalities that paid a visit: UEF Federal Committee member & Vice-President of the European Parliament Fabio Massimo CASTALDO, Co-Chair of the Conference on the Future of Europe & MEP Guy VERHOFSTADT, Mayor of Valencia Joan RIBÓ, Minister for Culture of the Government of Valencia Vicent MARZÀ, Director for Culture and Heritage of the Government of Valencia Carmen AMORAGA, former President of the European Parliament & current President of UEF Spain Enrique BARÓN, President of the European Movement in Spain Francisco ALDECOA, Regional Secretary for the European Union and External Relations of the Government of Valencia Joan CALABUIG, Vice-Director of the European Parliament Liaison Office in Madrid Juergen FOECKING and President of JEF Spain Doina STRATU.

Among all the remarkable speeches pronounced on that day, we would like to recall the Conference Co-Chair VERHOFSTADT’s encouraging words: “The EU is more than a single market or a political union, we share a common European culture.This kind of project must become Europe’s trademark. And I am convinced that the most innovative proposals to come out of the Conference will be those on how to boost European humanism, thought, art and lifestyle. […] Let’s spread our way of living and thinking through art in the framework of the CoFoE!”.

You can also share your ideas and feelings on the Valencia mural in the CoFoE digital platform, within the Democracy section.

*Media appearances:

1. El futuro de Europa florece ya desde la Nueva Bauhaus y la CoFoE, Alejandra ALMARCHA. Huffington Post.
2. Los federalistas europeos aterrizan en Valencia con un mural gigante, Lucas MARCO. elDiario.es.
3. L'artista Antonyo Marest pinta a València un mural dedicat a la democràcia, Montse CATALÀ. À Punt.
4. Valencia alberga el primer mural del proyecto Make Europe Bloom: the Time is Now!. Qué!
5. El artista alicantino Antonyo Marest pinta un mural en València financiado por el Parlamento Europeo, Carlos ARCAYA. Cadena SER Alicante.
6. València acull el primer mural del projecte ‘Make Europe Bloom’, sobre una de les façanes del Museu Faller. Ajuntament de València.
7. València estrena mural “Make Europe Bloom: the Time is now!. El Turista Digital.
8. València, Durham, Las Vegas: tras los pasos de Marest antes de ir Panamá, la próxima parada, Daniel TEROL. Alicante Plaza.

By Sandro Gozi, MEP and UEF President | Original here

The past year’s crisis underscored the need for a more united Europe. We must seize this opportunity to make the Conference on the Future of Europe a true forum with citizens to work together to achieve a more sovereign and democratic Europe, says UEF President and Renew MEP Sandro Gozi.

The European Community project is a successful example of cooperation. More than 60 years ago, the seed was sown for this great idea, this magnificent economic, political, and social tool that turned a continent, disjointed by the war, into a place of peace. 

The European Union’s (EU) effective response to the health, economic and social crisis caused by COVID-19 ought to be an accelerator of long overdue reforms of all kinds within the EU’s structure. 

The pandemic has made obvious the need to deepen European political integration if we do not want to act ‘ad hoc’ in future crises. Moreover, the lack of Community competences in certain areas is already untenable, as is the lack of the checks and balances that are inherent in any democracy to manage them. If we make progress in competences and division of powers, we will be moving towards a federal Europe. This is something that we have been pursuing since the Treaty of Rome. Among others, the purchase of vaccines, the digital certificate, or NextGenerationEU are the latest steps in this direction that leave no room for doubt. 

In that sense, we should understand the Conference on the Future of Europe as a means to an end. The Conference must make clear proposals and translate them into the Treaties. It is up to the European governments, institutions, parties and citizens to take the lead and make it a success. 

The issue of what progress should be made in terms of competences, and division of powers arises. Changes must be made in order to bring the federal horizon closer and thus increase the effectiveness of European democracy. 

The ideas collected in the Digital Platform and from the Citizens’ Panels cover a broad diversity of issues, but those more endorsed have one thing in common: citizens are asking for a more Democratic and Sovereign Europe. Contributors call for a restructuring of European institutions or even a federalisation of the European Union. 

Today, citizens need and want a strong, legitimate, and properly financed political Union that can tackle the great transnational challenges of our time, acting decisively in a wide range of policy areas, from climate change, growing social inequalities, health and migration to foreign affairs and defence. Citizens are calling for stronger pan-European democracy — real European political parties and movements and proper campaigns for European elections, based on the creation of a pan-European constituency and transnational electoral lists headed by the candidates for President of the European Commission. 

Europeans claim for a Union that is both a community of destiny and values, and a model for the new world now taking shape – an example of how countries can live in peace together, build cross-border and social solidarity, and protect human rights, the rule of law and fundamental freedoms. 

In this context, reforms are crucial to enhance the democratic dimension of the EU by granting new direct powers to the European Parliament (EP): 

• The EP must have fiscal power. As in any democracy, the body representing the citizens should be able to decide on the Union’s fiscal resources, whereas today the EP finds itself in the anomalous situation of representing the citizens but having no power to tax and decide on the Union’s resources. This change is made urgent also by the need to secure the debt of NextGenerationEU through mechanisms that allow the creation of new resources without going through a unanimous decision of the states.
• The EP must have the power to decide on an equal footing with the Council on the coordination of the member states’ economic and employment policies.
• It should have legislative initiative power in addition to the Commission’s power of initiative in cases of Commission inaction.
• Its role must be strengthened in relation to the procedure for revising the Treaties.

The past year’s crisis made obvious the need for a more united Europe. Hence, we must seize this opportunity to make the Conference on the Future of Europe a true forum with citizens to work together to achieve a more sovereign and democratic Europe. These reforms will create the basis for real democratic political life at European level, and at the same time a Europe that is effective in its action. The time to do it is now: now or never. Let us not waste this opportunity.