Europe and the world are facing huge multiple challenges in the third decade of the 21st century. Crises have characterised developments in recent decades - the financial crisis of 2008/09, the euro debt crisis of 2011/12, the refugee crisis of 2015 and, since February 2022, Europe is confronted with the Russian war against Ukraine.
- Europe as it exists today, is in terms of external security dependent on the United States – but since Donald Trump is back in Oval Office, it can no longer rely on US security guarantees in accordance with Article 5 of the NATO-Treaty. On the contrary, it seems that the United States are on the way from an ally to a rival – they threaten the NATO-partner Denmark with an annexation of Greenland and they are starting a trade war with their erratic tariff policy. In the Ukraine-Russia war, they are pursuing a neutral to pro-Russian policy and at the same time they try to impose a raw materials agreement on Ukraine with the aim to take over control of Ukrainian strategic raw materials. According to Carlo Masala, professor at the University of the German Federal Armed Forces in Munich, ‘the USA will not be a reliable partner in terms of values and interests for the foreseeable future.’ However, Europe is not only dependent on the USA, Europe can even be blackmailed by regional powers such as Türkiye.
- Europe, as it exists today, is confronted with a seemingly unstoppable immigration of especially young men, who come to Europe calling for asylum. Most of them have got their cultural imprint in misogynistic and antisemitic societies. Europe would need immigrants, but it lacks a concept for regulated, qualified and culturally compatible immigration.
- Europe, as it exists today, has recognised the threat by climate change. If the two-degree-target will not be achieved mankind will be confronted with a climate catastrophe. However, Europe alone cannot prevent this fatal development. The USA, China, India and Brazil are just as decisive, even more decisive, in stopping the catastrophic path towards a 2.8-degree warming.
- Europe, as it exists today, is still economically strong and important - but there is also an economic dependency in key-areas in a threatening extent: before the Russia-Ukraine war on energy from Russia and now even more from Islamist dictatorial regimes in the Gulf-area, on pharmaceuticals from India and China and on Chinese supplies of several goods and raw materials - on which also the planned energy-transition depends.
As the European states lack the means to tackle the major challenges, a bigger common European state is needed.
- On the one hand, this state must be large enough to achieve full capability to act in economic matters. And it must have the potential to become a world power.
- On the other hand, this state must be small and homogeneous enough – economically and in terms of interests – so that its citizens have a sense of belonging together and that in medium term they citizens of this European state could grow together to one nation.
Nova EUropa proposes a federation of the six EU founding states plus Austria to form a core European state, the "European Republic", which would then be as a common state a member of the European Union. This state would meet exactly the requirements described above.
