The EU is well placed to chart a progressive path through the crises caused by Russia’s illegal war against Ukraine, write Pedro Sanchez, Sanna Marin, and Lars Klingbeil.
Pedro Sanchez is the secretary general of the Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party (PSOE) and prime minister of Spain; Sanna Marin, Finland’s prime minister, is also the leader of the Finnish Social Democratic Party (SDP); Lars Klingbeil is the co-leader of the German Social Democratic Party (SPD).
Coronavirus pandemic, economy uncertainty, Russia’s war against Ukraine, energy crisis: Europe is currently facing a number of epochal challenges and upheavals. Global challenges such as climate change require global action and are in need of leadership in tackling them.
Yet, authoritarian regimes not only seek to undo the multilateral order but they also seek to undermine democracy and our common values globally. It is evident what our citizens need and must be able to rely on: a strong Europe.
The European Union was founded with the aim of making it impossible to wage war again on our continent. For this, we could also rely on our trusted and close partners across the Atlantic.
Friendship and cooperation were to replace armed conflict and discord. The European Union is the most successful peace project ever in Europe’s long and bloody history. It is our political responsibility to do all we can to ensure that it remains so.
Vladimir Putin’s illegal war of aggression against Ukraine, in violation of international law, has shaken the European security order right down to its very core.
The war is an attack on international peace and security, on our European values, on our democracy and on our way of life. Putin is seeking to destroy Ukraine and divide Europe. He is also vying for support from our partners in Africa, Asia and South America for his illegal war, which in reality amounts to brutal imperialism.
However, he has made a serious miscalculation.
Ukrainians are defending their country heroically, also thanks to extensive support from Europe. We shall continue to support Ukraine for as long as it needs.
Now, the European Union is stronger and more united than it has been for a long time. The unity with which it has imposed comprehensive sanctions on Russia and the speed of the measures taken are unprecedented.
The security order in Europe has irrevocably changed, which is why Finland and Sweden have made the right decision in applying to join NATO. We are convinced that our own strength is the warrant for securing peace in Europe.
This can also be seen as a mandate to reinforce the European pillar of NATO significantly in the coming years, as well as to intensify European research and development in the defence sector.
On the other hand, this war poses a challenge to social stability and cohesion throughout Europe. Putin’s aim is to divide Europe, strengthen populist and extremist groups and lay waste to the democracy he so much despises. However, he will not achieve this goal.
During the coronavirus pandemic, we already demonstrated that Europe is able to ensure social stability for its citizens. It was thanks to the leadership of the European Social Democrats who made sure that we weathered the crisis as well as we did.
With our Europe-wide financing of short-time work programmes, we protected companies from insolvency and avoided the social decline of individuals. At the same time, with the Next Generation EU, we ensured that Europe’s recovery from the pandemic would be strengthened through investments in climate protection, innovation and digitisation.
The next few years will pose a challenge that we can only master together at the European level. It is with concern that we observe how right-wing populists and far-right forces have come to power, playing with abandoning the common European path or at least endangering its success.
We, Social Democrats, are adopting a different approach. We believe that the way to a bright European future lies in European cooperation, finding common ground and achieving compromises across borders, even when it is not easy.
A determined, coordinated and solidarity-based European response is essential to limit the spread of the crisis. We must be steadfast in our commitment to supporting Ukrainians, while also identifying and mitigating the social and economic effects of the cruel war within the European Union.
We need to act to stabilise the energy markets. We must change the energy market rules in a way that effectively lowers energy prices. A key tool to achieve this is a European framework to allow the skimming-off of windfall profits in the energy sector.
No one should have to fear for their livelihood because of the crisis and no one should make record profits as a consequence of the unprecedented situation in the energy markets.
A sovereign Europe must be independent of energy imports from dictatorships and autocracies.
We want to do everything possible to boost the rapid expansion of renewable energies throughout Europe, to extend European grids and storage capacities and to unleash innovation by promoting climate-friendly technologies. In the long term, this is the way to create quality jobs, a strong economy and a cleaner future in Europe.
Our ambition is to make Europe the world’s first climate-neutral continent, becoming a role model and attractive partner for others, while protecting the most vulnerable ones and ensuring a just transition for all. In sum, our goal as Social Democrats also through the current crisis is to advance in a greener, social and feminist Europe.
Europe continues to be an attractive political centre and partner in a changing world. We must embrace this role and Europe must regard itself as a serious geopolitical actor. This also means that a peaceful, free and progressive Europe must be prepared to admit new member states.
We welcome the decision to offer Ukraine and Moldova the prospect of EU membership, offer Georgia a European perspective, and we fully support the EU accession of our Western Balkan partners when they fulfil all the relevant criteria. We will accompany this process politically and drive it forward.
Nevertheless, an enlarged union would also need to be capable to act assertively. Europe’s strength depends on its ability to act and make decisions, which would be strengthened by increasing qualified majority voting for instance in Europe’s common foreign and security policy.
And it also involves ensuring that strong mechanisms for defending democracy and the rule of law in Europe as well as for fighting corruption are in place.
Everyone must be prepared to give and take in order to achieve these goals. Compromise in order to move forward has always been Europe’s greatest strength. As Social Democrats, we shall make our contribution to such efforts.
Source: euractiv.com
