EUROPEAN Union summits can be fairly acrimonious affairs, with leaders from the 27 countries often locking horns on budgetary spending, the political future of the bloc and even existential issues such as the definition of 'Europe's identity'.
Not this time. True, Polish President Lech Kaczynski and the country's Prime Minister Donald Tusk squabbled publicly over who should represent the biggest ex-communist EU newcomer at the summit in Brussels on Nov 15-16. Poland also threatened to veto a December deadline for adopting ambitious EU legislation to fight climate change unless changes were made to shield the coal-based Polish economy from the impact.
But Warsaw's tough talking was the exception — and in the end the climate change deal was adopted at this week's summit.
What was striking about the Brussels meeting, however, was the unusual show of EU unity in tackling the current financial turmoil. EU leaders used the Brussels gathering to call for a 'Bretton Woods II' summit of the Group of Eight (G8) countries to redesign the world's financial architecture. Gordon Brown, Britain's prime minister, said the world should turn the financial crisis into an opportunity and reform global institutions such as the International Monetary Fund, conceived in 1944 when western leaders met in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, and mapped out a post-war financial order.
Brown also argued that the emergency G8 meeting could be used to seal a long-sought global trade deal finally bringing the ill-fated Doha trade talks to a close. Other EU heavyweights including France and Germany immediately backed the British proposal, with French President Nicolas Sarkozy insisting that he wanted the “re-foundation of the international financial system.”
It is still not clear, however, if the European initiative will be accepted by the US although Washington has said it favours holding a G8 meeting before the end of the year, with the participation of developing economies such as China, India, Brazil and South Africa. To get the
ball rolling immediately, Sarkozy, as current president of the EU, will be in the US with European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso on Saturday.
Europe's sudden burst of unity — and energy — in tackling the financial crisis in the last few days has led to an unusual self-congratulatory mood within the bloc.
Policymakers, who only weeks ago were moaning about the continuing uncertainty over the fate of the new EU constitution following its rejection by Irish voters last year, now appear newly confident about the bloc's ability to tackle seemingly intractable problems. When the going gets tough, say some officials, you can count on the men and women at Europe's helm to pull up their collective socks and get to work.
It is clearly too early to proclaim victory in the battle to shore up confidence in global financial markets. Crucially also, recession is staring many European countries, including EU heavyweight Germany, in the face. But there's no doubt that after weeks spent either blaming the US for their financial woes or launching unilateral emergency measures to protect their own banks and depositors, EU governments are now embarked on a more ambitious and collective track.
Many argue that the Brussels meeting is proof that although unwieldy and often divided, the EU can pull together in times of crisis. As Britain's Financial Times put it, “it is unwise to underestimate the ability of its consensus-and compromise-based methods to rise to the occasion when needed.”
The role of crises — internal and external — in pushing forward EU integration cannot be denied. It was Europe's failure to act rapidly in the Balkans in the 1990s and deep-seated internal divisions over the US-led war in Iraq that speeded up work on hammering out a common foreign and security policy and giving the bloc a (limited) military dimension, distinct from the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation. The Iraq conflict also prompted the EU to start work on a new constitution which would create the post of a first ever European foreign minister tasked with the job of 'speaking for Europe' on the world stage.
But for all the headlines, Europe's unity remains fragile, making it premature to talk of a new era of EU integration on the horizon.
For one, much depends on the mood and personality of the bloc's leaders. Much of the credit for the coordinated EU response to the financial turmoil goes to Messrs Sarkozy and Brown, with German Chancellor Angela Merkel providing crucial support.
The current crisis has undoubtedly improved the fortunes of both Sarkozy and Brown. The French leader, often criticised for being 'hyperactive' and unfocused, is now almost universally lauded for having forced EU nations into forging a joint response in the face of the financial meltdown.
Brown, whose British bank-bailout plan has been copied across Europe and in the US, has also seen a dramatic improvement in his domestic, European and international reputation.
Second, for all their bravura at the Brussels meeting, EU leaders are still stuck over the future of the new constitution. No Irish decision on the way forward is likely until, at the earliest, the EU's next scheduled summit in December. Failure to move forward on the issue continues to hobble the EU's global standing.
Third, the bloc is still deeply divided over how to deal with a newly assertive and energy-rich Russia. 'New' European states who were once part of the communist Soviet bloc want a tougher stance against Moscow. France and Germany prefer a more conciliatory approach.
Fourth, there are fears that the financial crisis will fuel political pressures to roll back the EU's core free market economic philosophy and lead to a resurgence in protectionist sentiment. There is concern that this will in turn affect upcoming international negotiations on combating climate change.
And finally, for all their emergency measures to shore up Europe's financial sector, the shadow of imminent recession looms over the EU. The impact of the financial crisis is already visible in the form of economic recession in countries such as Ireland, Spain and the UK, with bad news expected in the coming weeks from Germany and possibly France.
The grim forecast is that until at least 2010, Europe's outlook consists of little or no growth, climbing unemployment, rising budget deficits and higher public debt. As such, European leaders will need to not only stay united in the face of diversity but also to stay calm.
— The writer is Dawn's correspondent in Brussels.