Participatory democracy
Slovenia: Future of Europe debate should focus on resilience
After the successive crises over two decades, a core issue for the Conference on the Future of Europe should be how to ensure the resilience of the EU and put policies in favour of European citizens first, Slovenia's State Secretary Gašper Dovžan told EURACTIV.
GMF President: ‘The coronavirus is accelerating many trends that were there before’
Nationalist reactions to the spread of the coronavirus have further worsened already strained transatlantic relations. But GMF President Karen Donfried believes that the pandemic will underline the importance of cooperation. An interview from EURACTIV Germany.
Michael Ignatieff: Hungary will not be a single-party state forever
The democratic transition is not over in Central and Eastern Europe and we will continue our mission of training people and creating "free minds, people who think", Michael Ignatieff, a Canadian academic and president of the Central European University, told EURACTIV Slovakia.
French MEP: When it comes to the environment, the future CAP is regressive
In an interview with EURACTIV France, French MEP and vice-chair of the Socialists and Democrats (S&D) group Eric Andrieu spoke about the future of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) and highlighted its lack of environmentally-focused provisions.
Weber: I am concerned about key issues in Hungary
EURACTIV Poland's media partner "Gazeta Wyborcza" interviewed Manfred Weber, who announced his candidacy to be the Spitzenkandidat of the European Peoples' Party in the 2019 European elections.
Academic: Weakened Europe has once again become ‘a playground for influence games’
With Europe’s relative weight diminishing on the world stage, it becomes easier and easier for outside parties to play divide and rule and take advantage of European disunity, says Alexander Mattelaer.
Manfred Weber: We have to find consensus with France
While the debate about the future of Europe is gaining momentum, the leader of the European People's Party (EPP), Manfred Weber, calls on the German Christian Democrats to show more willingness to compromise in an interview with EURACTIV’s media partner Der Tagesspiegel.
Oettinger: Solidarity is not a one-way street
Europe's dispute over refugees, the controversial judicial reform in Poland and the election campaign in Bavaria were the topics of an interview with Commissioner Günther Oettinger by EURACTIV Germany's media partner "Der Tagesspiegel".
Humanitarian crisis management benefits from new technologies
Weather alert systems, real-time communication and debit cards for refugees: the use of new technologies make humanitarian aid more effective, Commissioner Christos Stylianides said in an interview. EURACTIV’s partner Euroefe reports.
Nathalie Loiseau: Proactive policies needed to promote women’s talents
In honour of International Women’s Day, France's European affairs minister, Nathalie Loiseau, talks about women and their place in Europe in an interview with EURACTIV.fr.
Macron’s advisor: France, Germany have only a few months to act
Jean Pisani-Ferry has developed French President Emmanuel Macron's economic programme and is one of his closest economic policy advisers. Germany and France need a common position to reform the Eurozone, he says and calls for action in an interview with EURACTIV's media partner WirtschaftsWoche.
Expert: The EU political agenda must be set by ordinary citizens
Arguing for an alternative vision of European cooperation, political scientist Richard Youngs told EURACTIV that an EU rethink must include new voices and involve a fully participative process of consultation, in line with what French President Emmanuel Macron has proposed in recent months. In his new book he shows how that can be achieved.
Scott Atran: People need purpose and meaning to embrace Europe
The European Union is not inevitable: it requires struggle and sacrifice otherwise it will die and Europeans must regain this sense of purpose, cultural anthropologist Scott Atran said in an interview with EURACTIV.com.
Grabbe: Hungary’s NGO law is discriminatory
For the EU, the fear is that this legislation is coercive and inhibits the free movement of capital, former Commission official Heather Grabbe told EURACTIV Germany.
EU’s real problem is the lack of a ‘good driver’
Romania's real concern is not the prospect of “multi-speed Europe” but the lack of a “good driver”, of real leadership and of a valuable European vision, Vasile Pușcaș told EURACTIV.com in an exclusive interview.
Saryusz-Wolski: Trump is not the end of the world
Europe’s military abilities are useless if there’s no political will to use them in the face of danger, Civic Platform MEP Jacek Saryusz-Wolski told Euractiv Poland.
Fleckenstein: Europe needs clarity on US foreign policy
The unpredictability offered by the Trump presidency has created a dangerous situation the likes of which has not been seen since the turmoil of the early 1990s, MEP Knut Fleckenstein told Euractiv Germany.
Parliament rapporteur: 2018 EU budget should focus on ‘prosperity’ and ‘security’
The 2018 EU budget should be pro-growth in order to create well-paid jobs but simultaneously boost security both externally and internally, Siegfried Mureșan told Euractiv.com in an interview.
Political analyst: Romania is undergoing a second ‘democratic’ revolution
The mass demonstrations that have swept Romania since 29 January have kicked off a social insurrection, the likes of which has not been seen since the overthrow of communism in Eastern Europe in 1989, Octavian Milewski told Euractiv Poland.
Leading Newspapers Alliance: Media cooperation can affect European Agenda
The EU has brought countries together more than even before, but the lack of a common debate is problematic. The Leading European Newspaper Alliance (LENA) is working towards this goal by bringing together seven newsrooms from seven European countries.
Senior EU notary: European integration to continue ‘with or without Brexit’
President of the Council of the Notariats of the European Union (CNUE) José Manuel García Collantes told EURACTIV Spain that the European project is on track and that free movement and integration will continue “with or without Brexit”.
Muscat: Rebutting Trump should not turn into anti-Americanism
EXCLUSIVE / Donald Trump is offering Europe the opportunity to gain the leadership role that it has always craved, but EU leaders should be vigilant not to fall into the anti-Americanism trap, Malta's premier told EURACTIV.com in a wide-ranging interview on internal and global challenges, outlining a vision for the future of Europe.
Czech Regions VP: Cohesion policy must serve citizens
Czech and Slovak national delegations to the European Committee of the Regions (CoR) recently presented a joint opinion on the future of cohesion policy after 2020, in which they set out seven common principles and priorities for the next programming period.
