Europe

As ironic as it seems, it is the EU’s overreach that could turn out to be its own undoing.

And it could be the failure of the EU’s supranationalism that will trigger a widespread return of the nation-state.

Almost three quarters of businesses in EU member states report widespread corruption, yet the issue has received little policy attention to date.

What do societies gain from migration? What are the social, political and cultural effects of an increasingly mobile global workforce? What problems could arise from the integration of migrants? And how can those problems be mitigated?

The Paris terror attacks are not just a terrible tragedy for those killed or injured and their families. Last weekend’s events have severe political, strategic and economic implications, which could haunt France and the entire EU for years to come.

As if Europe did not have enough problems to deal with before the refugee crisis, it is now faced with an even greater challenge: To deal with millions of underqualified migrants.

The challenge for Europe’s societies is to ensure that those migrants coming in will not remain welfare-dependent forever but find a way into productive society quickly. On that front, unfortunately, there is just not much reason for optimism.

It is breathtaking to watch how fast cornerstones of European integration are being undone as a result of hundreds of thousands of asylum seekers entering the EU.

Europe is suffering from some strange delusions that are less apparent when you live there. That is because certain beliefs and self-images are repeated until they can no longer be questioned without turning yourself into a political pariah. In my new essay, ‘Why Europe Failed’, I am dealing with some of them.