7 key challenges facing the European Union

The EU came into being during the post Second World War development of the liberal international order and, therefore, its interests and identity are inseparable from the emergence of this order. Thus, a crisis of the LIO is perceived as a crisis of the EU, affecting its international role and identity. Indeed, the EU is currently using narratives of crisis and resilience to mobilize support for itself and the LIO. In the face of perceived existential crises such as COVID–19 and the Russia–Ukraine war, we have witnessed a defensive turn in the EU’s foreign and security policies. This turn prioritizes the protection of European societies against external threats rather than cooperation and interdependence. By building its own resilience, the EU is seeking to be more strategic and selective in the protection of the LIO. However, by becoming increasingly ‘geopolitical’, the EU might also be risking some of the key foundations of the LIO and its own identity as a liberal actor. <a href="https://medium.com/international-affairs-blog/7-key-challenges-facing-the-european-union-be4f911535ed">Visit Now</a>