The verdicts of the EU Court of Justice (ECJ) in the cases of Poland and Hungary concerning the rule of law, which have been delivered on 16 February, are not only consequential for the functioning of the EU but also shed new light on the relation between the UK and [...]
In all its atrocity, the Russian invasion of Ukraine may serve to recall that the democratisation of Europe is both a momentous achievement and an ongoing challenge. The democratisation of Europe, which started in the middle of the 20th century in reaction to the atrocities of the Second World War, [...]
During the last meeting of the European Council, which she attended, Angela Merkel raised the perennial question as to what the European Union is. Reflecting on the debate in the Council about the objections of some member states against the introduction of the conditionality mechanism, she asked whether we are [...]
The extraordinarily tight outcome of the German elections has created the danger for the European Union of prolonged negotiations before the next federal government can be formed, lasting even as long as until Christmas. However, it also contains a most significant opportunity. This is not merely due to the defection [...]
This article was first published by The Brussels Times. Tourists are flying into space and life on Mars seems a less distant possibility. Meanwhile Europeans are busy trying to create a buzz about our future here on earth. With the first Europe-wide transnational panels taking place in Strasbourg (17-19 September), [...]
The Treaty of Lisbon sheds fresh light on the purposes of EU citizenship education. The hallmark of the 2007 Lisbon Treaty is that it construes the EU as a dual democracy. The EU is not merely a Union of democratic States, but also functions as a democracy of its own.[1] [...]
Held on 22nd June 2021 Jointly organised by The Federal Trust, Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung and Global Policy Institute 75 years after the multilateral international order was established through the foundation of the United Nations, it is now facing major challenges. Under attack from unilateralist leaders such as Donald Trump, and faced [...]
Within ten days after the finalisation of the UK withdrawal from the EU, the European Union is to start an ambitious Conference on the Future of Europe. The aim of the Conference is to discuss the place of the citizens in the construction of the Union and to underpin European [...]
Book Review by Brendan Donnelly, Director of The Federal Trust, of “Hitler's Cosmopolitan Bastard" by Dr Martyn Bond Martyn Bond’s fascinating biography of Count Richard Coudenhove-Kalergi (RCK) can be read and enjoyed on a number of levels, as a biography of its subject, as a history of European politics [...]
The author wishes to dedicate the present essay to the memory of the ever inspiring Michael Burgess, in live Founder and Director of the Centre for Federal Studies at the University of Kent. For decades, it has been common practice in academic circles to refer to the EU as [...]
