From its earliest beginnings in the aftermath of war, the ambition to create a common supranational identity was at the heart of the project that was to become the European Union. One of the EU’s founding fathers, Jean Monnet, spoke of the need to make people “work together, show them that beyond their differences and geographical boundaries there lies a common interest”.
The historic expansion of the union to encompass 27 member states has been a vindication of that vision, notwithstanding the recent shadow cast by Britain’s self-harming Brexit. Polling for a major report released on Wednesday by the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) finds that most citizens, in most member states, remain emotionally committed to the EU. A common response to the challenge of Covid, and the emergence of Vladimir Putin’s Russia as a threat to peace and stability, appear to have strengthened a sense that cooperation and solidarity hold the key to prosperity and security.
