A New Era For Europe

The COVID-19 pandemic devastated the European Union yet also spurred an unprecedented level of cooperation and joint decision making. The EU and its Member States rallied to meet the challenges of the global health threat with a jointly procured vaccine, a jointly funded economic recovery package and a jointly supported public borrowing programme. As a result, 2 years later the economy has begun to recover and the EU is ready to consider its next steps in crisis management and planning. A triple transition of climate, digital and social change will dictate the EU's overall strategy in coming years. Policymakers have an opportunity to set the Union on a path toward growth and prosperity, but if they are not careful they also could set the stage for entrenched inequality and disagreement. Continuing with longstanding policies also poses a danger, given the need for change to meet the challenges ahead. The EU will have a chance to set a course along one of three main scenarios: Business as Usual, Fragmentation and Conflict, or a New Era. Under the first option, the EU does not adapt as needed to protect the environment or give its population the skills they need to survive in a digital world, and the EU falls further behind its international counterparts. In the second scenario, EU policies actively unravel the alliances and economic programmes that have taken so long to build, with corresponding threats to political and economic stability. But the EU also has a better option: pursuing policies that will lead to a New Era within the single market and around the world.

This book draws together leading experts to examine the key issues in China-EU relations. China-EU relations are increasingly complex and affected by a number of inter-related factors, such as China’s global rise, growing China-US strategic competition, US global withdrawal, the transatlantic split, the China-Russia comprehensive "alliance," and Brexit. The book highlights the struggles of both China and the EU to look for a dynamic and durable mode of engagement in an attempt to achieve the balance between opportunities and challenges, and between partnership and rivalry. International contributors explore how to conceptualise China-EU relations and identify their differences and commonalities such as the EU’s role in China’s foreign policy process and how the EU works with China as a strategic partner. Finally, it analyses China’s and the EU’s perceptions of their own present and future roles. Shedding light on the perspectives of understanding and change in China-EU relations and its impact on multilateralism, it will appeal to researchers and professionals working in International Relations, International Political Economy and area studies who are interested in the rise of emerging powers and the changing world order.

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Reimagining democratic societies, although a demanding task, is one in which higher education must engage. As societies change, our understanding of democracy must also evolve. We need democratic institutions, but also democratic culture and democratic innovation. Citizen participation, as a cornerstone of democracy, must go beyond citizen mobilisation on just a few issues. An educated, committed citizenry deeply involved in creating and sustaining diverse democratic societies is essential for human progress and advancing the quality of life for all. The authors - academics, policy makers and practitioners from Europe and the United States - argue this point, making the case for why democratic reimagination and innovation cannot succeed without higher education and why higher education cannot fulfil its educational, academic and societal missions without working for the common good. Case studies provide examples of how higher education can contribute to reimagining and reinvigorating democracy.

This book examines the involvement of the European Union (EU) and China in Central Asia and critically assesses the implications this has for the region as a whole. The volume adopts a comprehensive, interdisciplinary approach, combining insights from International Relations, EU Studies, International Economics, International Law, Sinology, and History. It concentrates on three thematic levels: (1) historical and contextual, (2) geopolitical and geo-economic, and (3) socio-cultural and institutional. Paying particular attention to the role of the EU and the factors driving the EU’s and China’s relations with Central Asia, it looks at how the Central Asian countries position themselves vis-à-vis China’s growing influence, and how the balance of power between China, Russia, and the EU plays out. Contributors also explore the important historical context of the ‘Silk Routes’, as well as of the erstwhile connection of the Central Asian states with the Soviet Union. Critically analysing the potential areas for collaboration and synergy between the EU and China, the book also discusses the extent to which they share a common ground in Central Asia that could serve as a basis for long-term cooperation. It will be of interest to all scholars and students of International Relations, Economics, Sinology, and History.

The outbreak of the global financial crisis in 2008 ended a long period of crisis-free development of the European Union. Since then, the Union has experienced several subsequent crises. The global financial crisis of 2008-2009 turned into a sovereign debt crisis in Europe that lasted until 2013. (2) This was followed by the COVID crisis in 2020-2021. Europe was just about to emerge from this crisis when Russia waged war on Ukraine in February 2022. The destructions of this brutal war, the sanctions on the aggressor, Russia, and the subsequent rapid decoupling from Russia led to an energy crisis in Europe. This series of crises tested the EU's economic, social, and political resilience, and its capacity to adjust and reinvent itself. Volume I aims to identify the key challenges policymakers and societies in the EU face at the European and national levels. It also offers possible public policy actions to help the Union emerge from the current crisis stronger. Volume II looks behind these challenges and zooms in on some key aspects to improve our understanding of the nature of the challenges and the factors that shape and sometimes constrain possible policy responses.

This volume offers the first detailed statement by a contingent of RAND thinkers on the contours of a redefined Atlantic partnership.