The European Union was expected to become an empire capable of competing with global powers – first the US and Russia, and then the increasing Chinese. In terms of GDP or PPP, the EU continues to be 1 of the world's largest economies, but in terms of real force in global policy, its influence is amazingly limited. The US continues to dominate globally, China is clearly on their heels and the Union remains structurally weak, frequently invisible despite its tremendous potential. As a result, it gives the impression of a disheartened creation that gradually loses its importance on the planet stage.
The key question is: what can we do to make the EU number again? Is the solution to deeper integration and centralisation, or to strengthen associate States?
If we presume that "stronger national states" are to act as a motor of the EU's power, this would in practice mean the dominance of 2 countries: Germany and France. another countries – especially those from Central and east Europe – would become susceptible to the external influences of the US, China and Russia, de facto acting as possible satellite states. Poland is already seen as a country powerfully dependent on the United States, which further strengthens the asymmetry within the EU. Hungary and Slovakia are satellites of Russia.
This arrangement does not lead to the reconstruction of Europe's power but to its further weakening – besides in the economical dimension.
Therefore, the only real remedy seems to be More Brussels, not less. Finally, stronger EU institutions could represent the interests of Europe as a full and not just the interests of respective major states or external powers.
Unfortunately, national political selfishness effectively blocks the way to integration. The word “loss of sovereignty” can be blown to any size, whether justified or not. It is besides easy to play with the fear of "German dominance", even though this argument is mostly detached from reality – not only due to the fact that without the German economy many countries, including Poland, would have immense problems, but besides due to the fact that Germany has no political ambition to manage European disputes and national hells.
As a result, the EU is in a stalemate: it needs deeper integration to be a global power, but it is hampered by concerns that frequently have more to do with political rhetoric than with real threats.
