Can the European Union Survive? Dr Stefan Auer, La Trobe University, Thursday 14 July, 2011

The ongoing debt crisis in Greece, Portugal and Ireland has raised concerns at Europe’s ability to cope with its problems. At stake is the very survival of the European Union (EU) and, more particularly, the future of the Eurozone.

With weaker members of the EU expecting to be bailed out by others, the present crisis is pulling the nations of Europe apart, reinforcing nationalistic resentments. While Germany is increasingly reluctant to continue supporting debt-laden members of the EU by providing emergency loans, there is a growing opposition amongst the receiving nations to accept the conditions that accompany this assistance. The tensions within Europe are further exacerbated by the growing reluctance of members to honour the spirit of the borderless Schengen zone, which permits the unrestricted internal migration of European citizens.

This talk will examine the future of the EU in the light of the current crisis. It will do so primarily by focusing on Germany which, alongside with France, has historically been the bedrock of European integration, both politically and economically. Is Germany’s position in Europe and the wider world once again open to speculation, reviving the proverbial ‘German question’? Two recent populist decisions, the German government’s decision to phase out all nuclear power, and its rejection of the UK-France led invasion of Libya in the UN Security Council, call into question the present German government’s capacity to deal adequately with difficult long term issues, including the future of its place in the EU.

Dr Stefan Auer is Senior Lecturer, Jean Monnet Chair of EU Interdisciplinary Studies in the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, La Trobe University, Melbourne. Before this he was Lecturer and Academic Director of the Dublin European Institute, University College Dublin. He has written and lectured extensively on European issues, with particular emphasis on the EU’s democratic legitimacy, nationalism in central Europe and modern political thought. He is also a regular contributor for ‘The Australian’ on contemporary European issues. His book, Liberal Nationalism in Central Europe, won the prize for Best Book in European Studies (2005), awarded by the UK-based University Association for Contemporary European Studies (UACES).