Europe United: a partnership for peace
The Amsterdam canals glimmering in late-October sunbeams bear little touch of the devastation felt by war-torn Europe at the end of the Second World War. Passing by Dam square and observing the mass of tourists from all parts of the world, with French, English, German and a multitude of other languages blending into the background noise, even the notion of “war” on this continent seems surreal –to think that merely decades have passed since bombers flew over the very same city.
In our day, one can travel from Warsaw to Paris on the same train ticket. Very rarely is one requested to display any means of identification, and if asked to do so, a driver’s license is sufficient. Annually, the Eurovision Song Contest is held, representing both the most absurd and extraordinary contributions from European music. Hundreds of thousands of students take part in the Erasmus-programme every year, living and studying abroad in another European country as a part of their education. Cultural incorporation such as this is not unlikely to leave profound impact on the future political climate of our world. As political scientist Stefan Wolff put it: “Give it 15, 20 or 25 years, and Europe will be run by leaders with a completely different socialisation from those of today.”
Perhaps it was this vision Winston Churchill had in mind when he spoke on a radio broadcast in 1948 in favor of European cooperation. Still today, the echoes of the words he uttered are not without significance; “We are asking the nations of Europe between whom rivers of blood have flowed, to forget the feuds of a thousand years and work for the larger harmonies on which the future depends.”
For the duration of only the past couple of centuries, Europe has suffered through the Napoleon wars, the Schleswig wars, the Austro-Prussian war, the Franco-Prussian war, World War I, the Spanish civil war, World War II, and several others. It is certainly remarkable that such a continent can now find itself in such peaceful stability. Europe, as it stands united, is not the same Europe of the past. My father still exclaims surprise at the sheer thought that currencies as strong as the French franc and the Deutsche Mark were abandoned in favor of the Euro.
Yet this — abandoning patterns of the past for innovative, ambitious ideals — is precisely the concept that the leaders of Europe were striving for when they gathered in Maastricht in 1992 and formally signed the Maastricht-treaty, creating the European Union and a single European currency. The idea of European federalism, dating back to the European Coal and Steel community from 1951, was sought to attain peace through trade relations and political ties. Frankly, one can express it such as this: countries dependent on each other will not go to war against one another.
Consequently, the European Union was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2012, reasoned by the chairman, Thorbjørn Jagland, “for over six decades having contributed to the advancement of peace and reconciliation, democracy and human rights in Europe”. Although spiking controversies, most public debaters, whether agreeing or disagreeing, were united in the thought that it should have been awarded earlier.
Ironically enough, the country awarding the EU with the Nobel Peace Prize, is not even a member country. Norway has so far held two referendums, where a minor majority voted against joining the European Union. I myself have family members who strongly opposed EU-membership, yet many of the have since reasoned that the European Union was different in 1994. This was before the historic expansion eastward, the ambitious climate agreements, Schengen and Interpol, the policies that today encompass such vast areas — and the groundbreaking collaboration we today depend upon. I do think, and strongly hope, that they would tick off another box if a referendum were to be held tomorrow.
For while the rest of our continent is collaborating on issues such as education, worker’s rights, climate policies and social equality, Norway is merely standing on the outside. It is odd, that we allow ourselves to not take a more anticipatory role in shaping the society of tomorrow. As a member of the EEA, Norway does contribute to the free trade-aspect of the European Union. Yet when it comes to the EU as a peace project, we are simply stowaways.
Borderless challenges demand transnational solutions. It is impossible for countries alone to solve the pressure the world is currently facing. With a tremendous financial and humanitarian crisis impeding on the progress of civilization, we must together find a common approach. The European Union is attempting to do so, setting a model for other regions — ASEAN, the African Union — to come together in unity.
Imagine a world without borders, more cooperation and less barriers. This dream, however ludicrous it today might seem to some, is what drives my belief in federalism and transnational agreements. It is only through partnership that we can achieve peace, embodied through the European Union. I live in the hope that this will one day expand to include all nations.
