When Giuseppe Mazzini was at the forefront of the Italian political scene in the mid-nineteenth century, he was vying to unite a previously disjointed Italy. Once that was achieved in 1871, Mazzini reiterated that the unification of Europe was the continuation of the Italian unification. While the idea made sense even back then, Europe was marred by a plethora of antagonistic forces sandwiched between the German and Italian Unifications and the culmination of World War II. That moment onwards Europe has collectively hankered after sustainable unity, to extinguish the demons of their violent past, but that hasn’t managed to materialise for a multitude of reasons. The question of European integration has an uncanny tendency of resulting in a throwback to the past. And with Europe falling from the apogee of its heyday, the continent has found it hard to deal with the changing global picture.
Historically USA has provided Europe with the sole model for a single market, but global economic convulsions have meant there is an upsurge of Asia and Latin America as well. Experts opine that soon the eurozone GDP could lag behind China as far as purchasing power parity is concerned. And even more alarmingly there is a possibility that China, when coupled with India, could amount to nearly twice the size of the eurozone economy. The cumulative GDP of G-7 countries could diminish owing to the recent upsurge of nascent economic powerhouses. Hence, it goes without saying that Europe is far from being a part of any geopolitical status quo – if one exists – and it must collectively endeavour to overcome the political and economic differences within its ranks.
Considering the fact that any unification involves the collective good and the vested interests, clarity in differentiating and apt prioritising is a prerequisite for progressing together. David Cameron’s ‘holier than thou’ standpoint at the recent EU summit was a perfect example of what should not be happening, for the eurozone to climb the pecking order in the global matters. Obviously, the foremost task of every individual member state is to ensure that its own unit attains as much stability as possible. This can only be achieved via responsible policy making on the part of individual governments, who should take measures that prove to be fruitful for their own interests but that also, cater the greater good of the entire zone. It is all good compelling individual states to follow a rulebook, and for those who prove to be incompetent conditional aid is another popular choice; but every country should be given an opportunity to cleanup its own mess.
Now, for those countries who have generated so much mess that they are forced to wash their dirty linen in public – or worse, who are dependent on others for a purge out- an authoritative, yet considerate approach on the part of the Who’s Who of the zone is required. The formulation of budgetary policies, of the countries that find themselves in a hole, is the most telling task for any authority, and therefore, it should be handled meticulously. This would require a metamorphosis of thought process at the European helm, and the powers that be must embrace the redefinitions of sovereignty and authority among other things. The interlinked web that the eurozone has become connotes that sifting collective interests from individual standpoints would take an unprecedented level of mutual understanding, barring which the European cauldron would continue to simmer on endlessly.
Any planning for the future for the Europeans should encompass both the fiscal policies and competitive policies and the imposition of “second stage”. The executive duties should obviously continue as they exist presently, but another important factor worth considering is the presence of a ministry representing the eurozone in international financial institutions. The creation of a European finance ministry is proving to be inevitable; and if it isn’t formulated in the days to come, it would have to be formed for better supervision of the financial sector eventually. For example, G-20 members envisage Europe as a whole rather than focusing on its member states individually; and hence collective representation would prove to be unavoidable one day.
Any student of European history is well aware of the historical problems that the continent has had to face. And now with the continent at the crossroads of epoch-making developments a collective effort, that supersedes historical animosities and egoistic approaches, is required for the zone to penetrate into the upper echelons of the global geopolitical structure.
The writer is Texas A&M University
graduate who is currently employed with
Telenor in the Products – Commercial Division.
He can be reached at [email protected]
