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Thursday November 26, 2009

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Past Event

A Foreign Policy and Center on the United States and Europe Event

Economic Crisis, Political Rebound: The State of the European Union in 2009

Europe, European Union


Event Summary

In the largest transnational elections ever, millions of voters across the 27 nations of the European Union (EU) went to the polls from June 4-7 to elect the 736 members of the European parliament. These elections will kick off an intense political season for the EU, which will include the appointment of a new EU commission and a final vote on the Lisbon Treaty in Ireland later this year. These important political developments occur as the global economic crisis has taken its toll on European unity, to the point that some now question if the EU can survive at all.

Event Information

When

Thursday, June 11, 2009
2:30 PM to 5:45 PM

Where

Falk Auditorium
The Brookings Institution
1775 Massachusetts Ave., NW
Washington, DC
Map

Contact: Brookings Office of Communications

E-mail: events@brookings.edu

Phone: 202.797.6105

On June 11, the Center on the United States and Europe at Brookings (CUSE) and the Heinrich Böll Foundation hosted a discussion of the political and economic challenges of the European Union. The first panel looked at the implications of the downturn for the EU and the Eurozone and featured Scheherazade Rehman of the Elliott School of International Affairs at George Washington University; Adam Posen of the Peterson Institute for International Economics; and Clive Crook of the Financial Times. Brookings Senior Fellow Justin Vaisse moderated the discussion. The second panel assessed the results of the recent elections and the consequences for the political life of the EU. Panelists included John Bruton, ambassador of the European Union to the United States; Andrew Moravcsik, professor of politics and director, European Union Program at Princeton University; and Brookings Visiting Fellow Federiga Bindi. Klaus Linsenmeier, executive director of the Heinrich Böll Foundation North America, moderated the discussion. Participants took questions after each panel.

Transcript

JUSTIN VAISSE:  We might find ourselves at a critical juncture, and 2009 might indeed be seen retrospectively as a turning point. In the short-term, first, Europe just held elections for the European Parliament, and there will soon be a decision on whether to renew the mandate of the President of the Commission, José Manuel Barroso. In a couple of months, there will be a final decision on the Lisbon Treaty, in a make or break referendum in Ireland, which will have important consequences for Europe.

In the medium term, there are very serious questions on what would be the lasting impact of the economic crisis on Europe. And that's the subject of this first panel.

And then, in the long term, it's quite possible that 2009 might mark the end of a cycle. After focusing on the creation of the single market and the euro, starting in the mid-‘80s, then on the question of enlargement to the East, Europe devoted the best part of this decade to institutional debates. If the Lisbon Treaty is adopted, this phase will be over, and we certainly won't regret it.

So to discuss the current state of the EU, we have a very prestigious group of people joining us today.

Participants

2:30 PM -- Panel 1: Will Europe Survive? The Political Impact of the Economic Crisis on the European Union

Moderator: Justin Vaisse

Senior Fellow
The Brookings Institution

Adam Posen

Deputy Director
Peterson Institute for International Economics

Scheherazade Rehman

Professor
The Elliott School of International Affairs, George Washington University

Clive Crook

Chief Washington Columnist, The Financial Times; Senior Editor, The Atlantic
Columnist, National Journal

4:15 PM -- Panel 2: From the European Parliament Elections to the Lisbon Treaty – A Survey of the European Union Political Landscape

Moderator: Klaus Linsenmeier

Executive Director
Heinrich Böll Foundation North America

Andrew Moravcsik

Professor of Politics and Director, European Union Program
Princeton University

John Bruton

Ambassador, European Union
Delegation of the European Commission to the United States

Federiga Bindi

Visiting Fellow, Foreign Policy, Center on the United States and Europe


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