World
Populism Divides European Union
More voters want to regain their nation’s sovereignty and abolish Brussels bureaucracy.
T BY MICHAEL COZZI
he bonds that once held the European Union togeth- er are fracturing, plunging its future into doubt.
Along with NATO, the 27-member
EU has traditionally played a strong role as a U.S. ally by reinforcing collec- tive defense against a hostile Russia. But it has also served as a barrier
to U.S. companies wanting to trade with European markets because of its bureaucratic leadership and pen- chant for red tape. Now there are signs that the pan- European project might be on a path to dissolution. France and Germany, its major
powers, along with Italy, Czechia, and Denmark, are among EU nations tiring of the stasis gripping officials in Brussels who have failed to energize the block’s economy or deal with waves of immigrants from North Africa and the Middle East that have set off populist revolts. Nile Gardiner, director of The Heritage Foundation’s Margaret
Thatcher Center for Freedom, argues that there is a trend between the rise of populist, euroskeptic parties and the rejection of the traditional center left. “I do think that there is no guar-
antee that the EU will last forever, and I am of the view that the EU can eventually break up and fall apart. “It may take several decades, but
the long-term trajectory for Europe will be a return to sovereignty and self-determination.” Gardiner said the populist par-
ties tend to be socially conservative, fighting a left-wing, progressive, woke agenda. They share a common cause
against curtailing sovereignty, mass migration, and Islamism. Ric Grenell, a former acting
director of national intelligence and U.S. ambassador to Germany in the Trump administration, is concerned by what he’s seeing. “The implications for U.S. foreign
policy of European inaction are bad enough without worrying about even
Migrant Wave Swamps EU Nations T
he EU was built on the principle of “free movement,” meaning that
a European can live and work in any of the member countries and cross borders without any passport controls. But immigrants are also using free
movement to their advantage, traveling on dinghies across the Mediterranean or on foot through the Balkans and then fanning out across Europe in search of a better life. An estimated 1.2 million were found
the driving forces behind Brexit. Country
United Kingdom Germany Spain Italy
France
more dramatic outcomes,” he told Newsmax. The EU not only partners with
the United States on deterrents to countries like Russia and Iran, but it also provides significant intelli- gence-gathering. “The EU can be a powerful part-
ner and force multiplier for sanc- tions against countries hostile to our collective interests, but I worry about the political will to maintain them, given Europe’s political and econom- ic challenges,” Grenell said. The EU has significantly helped
to weaken Russia’s hand in the war in Ukraine, he said, and frustrated Iran’s capabilities of building nucle- ar facilities and stockpiling arms. The main driver of euroskepti-
cism is the rise of populism, fueled by immigration. The 2016 election of President
Donald Trump and Britain’s Brexit referendum the year before, which led to the United Kingdom withdraw- ing from the EU, were two initial milestones of global populist anger. But recent elections in EU countries portend more political uncertainty. They include Giorgia Meloni’s
rise in 2022 to become Italy’s prime minister, the steady gains of Marine Le Pen’s National Rally party in France, and the Alternative for Germany (AfD) coming in second behind German Chancellor Olaf Scholz by only 1.7%.
But since Britain left the EU in 2020,
to have arrived illegally last year, according to the European Commission. Ironically, immigration was one of
No. Illegals 745,000 700,000 469,000 458,000 300,000
it has become home to more illegal immigrants than any other nation, this year hosting 745,000 illegals — accounting for one in 100 of its entire population, according to Oxford University researchers.
The British government’s inability to
solve the issue was a factor in its crushing defeat in a general election in July. The new prime minister, Keir Starmer, has pledged $100 million for projects in Africa and the Middle East to discourage migrants from leaving.
52 NEWSMAX | DECEMBER 2024
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100
