Written Statement: State of the union

The reasons for the weaknesses being demonstrated by the European Union must be correctly recognised.
These weaknesses result from developments within the Union, not from unforeseen events happening outside or inside Europe.
The Union is suffering from overstretch and over-reach.
Because of them, have emerged the dilemmas and paralysis that affect the Union as it faces the big problems of today – among which the migration crisis, the stand-off in the Ukraine, the tragic Greek muddle and the persisting high unemployment.
The Union expanded its commitments and aspirations, but the political will was not really there and the means to carry them out not really available.
Meanwhile its soft power outside its borders continued to increase, maintaining the attractiveness of its model, fuelling expectations as to what the Union could do for “people”.
We are told that “more Europe” is the solution to this state of affairs.
Many European citizens living their daily lives away from the pressures and shared assumptions of political forces involved in the European project, fail to understand what is going on.
The solution to overstretch and overreach can at least during a first phase, only be found in political and economic consolidation, not by enhancing overreach.