EU imperialism Alda Sousa IIRE 2 nd December

EU imperialism Alda Sousa, IIRE, 2 nd December 2019

About myself: disclosure Not an economist or a social scientist I teach Genetic Epidemiology and Population Genetics at Porto University (Portugal) I have been in the FI for nearly 45 yrs (and in various activisms for even longer) Between 2012 and 2014 I was a MEP (Member of European Parliament) for the Left Bloc (Bloco de Esquerda)

Overview of report I. EU as a project for the formation of an European bourgeoisie II. IV. EU integration: a process leading to more inequality and divergence (success for dominant classes) The contradictions in the EU leading to the current political and economic crisis EU in crisis and disintegration Greece and Brexit EU breaking from a weak and from a strong link Questions and strategy for the Revolutionary Left

EU Imperialism or interimperialist competition? Not in the sense of an unified and perceptible strategy Iraq: USA + UK Lybia: France + UK Syria: USA + France + UK However, it is Angela Merkel who negotiates about Syria, and not Mogherini (High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy / Vice-President of the Commission)

EU Imperialism or interimperialist competition? • Since the beginning, the project of the EU was to build an alternative economic and political space/block to compete with the USA • The official discourse has been the one of building a land of peace and prosperity after the horrors of two word wars (especially WWII) • European conservatives, liberals and social-democrats have always (still are) at the core of the building of such a project • Free Trade agreements have played an important role in this “imperialist” strategy

Some elements of History (1)

The European Union: 510 million people – 28 countries 70% of trade inside the EU Member States of the European Union Candidate countries and potential candidates

EU population compared to the rest of the world Population in millions (2019) 1433 1366 513 329 127 EU (2019) China (2019) India (2019) Japan (2019) 146 Russia (2019) United States (2019)

How many people live in the EU? Population in millions (2019) 513 million in total Germany France United Kingdom Italy Spain Poland Romania Netherlands Belgium Greece Czechia Portugal Sweden Hungary Austria Bulgaria Denmark Finland Slovakia Ireland Croatia Lithuania Slovenia Latvia Estonia Cyprus Luxembourg Malta

Enlargement: from six to 28 countries 1952: Germany, France, Italy, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg 1973: UK, Ireland, Denmark 1981: Greece 1986: Portugal and Spanish State 1995: Sweden, Finland, Austria 2004: Estonia, Letonia, Latvia, Poland, Czeck Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia 2007: Romania + Bulgaria 2013: Croatia Several countries awaiting

The European treaties 1952 The European Coal and Steel Community 1958 The treaties of Rome: • The European Economic Community • The European Atomic Energy Community (EURATOM) 1987 The European Single Act: the Single Market 1993 Treaty on European Union - Maastricht 1999 Treaty of Amsterdam 2003 Treaty of Nice Treaty of Lisbon 2009

The Eurozone (19 out of 28 ) - 1999 A success for dominant classes EU countries using the euro EU countries not using the euro

The EU institutions European Council (summit) European Parliament Court of Justice Court of Auditors European Investment Bank Council of Ministers (The Council) European Commission Economic and Social Committee of the Regions Agencies European Central Bank

Some elements of History (2) (or how did we get into this mess? )

A total undemocratic building of structures of power of the European Union Did Europeans had a saying/vote all along the process of establishing this “European Order”? Mostly no, but

Referendums in European countries (1) Norway (1994) About joining EU – rejected Denmark (2000) and Sweden (2003) About entering/joining Eurozone – rejected Denmark (1992 and 1993) Maastricht Treaty – rejected and then accepted Ireland (2008 and 2009) Lisbon Treaty – rejected and then accepted

Referendums in European countries (2) France and Netherlands (2005) European Constitution drafted by former French President Giscard d’Estaing To establish an European Super State Result: NO !!!! Project was abandoned then and came up in a new version in Lisbon Treaty

Portugal and the EU In Portugal no referendum on Europe has ever taken place Attempts were made (petitions) Maastricht In 2009 the Socialist Party (Social-democrat) has promise a referendum on Lisbon Treaty, but it never took place

Who takes the decisions? And how?

The EU institutions and functioning Intergovernmental agreements Supra-national “structures” of decision European Parliament has much less “power” than most of national Parliaments Non-elected structures like the ECB (European Central Bank) have an immense power Less decision power of Member States

The EU institutions European Council (summit) European Parliament Court of Justice Court of Auditors European Investment Bank Council of Ministers (The Council) European Commission Economic and Social Committee of the Regions Agencies European Central Bank

How EU laws are made Unlike national Parliaments, European Parliament does not propose legislation Commission: makes formal proposal Parliament and Council of Ministers: decide jointly National or local authorities: implement

European Parliament 751 members Only institution that is directed elected by citizens of Member States (procedures vary according to electoral national rules) (Abstention in European elections has been increasing over the years) MEPs group according to political groups, not by countries European Parliament does not propose legislation

The European Parliament 2019 - 2024 Source: European Parliament in collaboration with Kantar

The European Commission 28 Commissioners, one from each EU country • Proposes new legislation • Executive organ • Represents the EU on the international stage

Council of Ministers One minister A decision must have the support of, at least, 55 % of Member States (16 countries) from each EU Member States that represent 65% of the EU’s population

EU budget 2018 EU budget: € 160 billion ≈ 1 % of GDP (1 cup of coffee per citizen per day) (In most European countries, national budgets are 40% of national GDP) Not a redistributive budget capable of diminishing inequalities (ex: Common Agricultural Policy and Queen of England)

The ECB (European Central Bank) Is legally forbidden to lend money directly to Member States Member states are forbidden to “help” each other The ECB lends money to investors (banks, pension funds, etc) at 1% rate of interest and these investors lend money to Greece, Portugal etc. at 4 -5% rate and short deadlines for payments (Actually the European Commission used European Stability Mechanism and European Financial Stability Facility to loan grants)

The ECB (European Central Bank) Supervision: The European Central Bank supervises the +/ - 130 of the most important banks National bank supervisors work closely together

The Fiscal Compact (2012) The Treaty on Stability, Coordination and Governance in the Economic and Monetary Union; also referred to as TSCG or more plainly the Fiscal Stability Treaty is an intergovernmental treaty Rules for national budgets: Max deficit: 3% of GDP Max of 60% for debt/GDP ratio Recipe to the disaster

The troika IMF (International Monetary Fund) ECB (European Central Bank) EC (European Commission)

“Structural adjustments” Public spending (health, education, housing, etc) Drastic lowering of salaries Privatization of public assets Deregulation of economy

Stereotypes Northern Europeans are hard-workers Southern Europeans are lazy (and that is why Greece and Portugal put themselves into default) Former president of Eurogroup, Dijsselbloem (a social-democrat from Netherlands): “Southern Europeans spend their money in booze and women” (2017)

Tensions Between Centre and periphery of EU Between National and Supra-national levels of decision (Neoliberalism is a political program) Memoranda for Greece and for Portugal were very ideological documents Fiscal compact is austerity for ever

Greece 1 st Memorandum (bailout) – 2010 – PASOK (SD) in gov. 2 nd Memorandum – 2012 – ND in Power Jan 2015 – Syriza wins general elections February – 1 st agreement with “creditors” July – referendum about 3 rd Memorandum OXI (NO) wins by 61% against 39% Yes One week later Tsipras signs 3 rd Memorandum – capitulation – to EU + NATO + Israel Tsipras had no Plan B

Some data from Greece Before Troika (2009) After Troika (2016) Per capita GDP 71 % as compared to Germany 43% Per capita GDP as compared to France 47 % 69 % Unemployment rate 20% (45% for young people) Poverty > 1/3 population

Brexit 2013 – Cameron promises a referendum (by pression of the far-right UKIP and its leader Nigel Farage and also by eurosceptical inside Conservative Party). At the time, he was in coalition with Liberal-democrats 2015 – Cameron wins with absolute majority: has to carry on the referendum 2016 – 52% Leave, 48% Remain; the lead of the Leave campaign is the xenophobic right and not about any plan for the future. Let’s take back control Analysing the results is a more complex task 2017 - May wins, but Labour (with Corbyn) has its greatest share of votes since 1945 A deadlock

The EU at its worst: policies towards migrants and refugees

Treaty of Rome (1957) Four Freedoms: Capital Goods Services People

Schengen area

Borders (“external” and “internal”) Free Movement? Schengen only applies to EU nationals, not to non. European residents Derogatory rules for East European countries Frontex (EU border force agency) EU - Turkey agreement (2016) Camps and detention centres inside EU Towards an European army?

Borders and refugee “crisis” Year N. of deaths in Mediterranean N. of migrants/refugees received 2015 ≈ 3, 800 1 million 2016 >5, 000 363, 000 2017 >3, 139 171, 000 How and why can’t the EU (500 million) host 1 million refugees? Distinction between refugees and migrants is a mistake

EU and “security” EU spent 10 x more in security, fences, borders’ control, patrolling than in asylum policies The Mediterranean sea became a cemetery – no memory of such a death toll in “peace time” Criminalization of help to refugees /migrants Tolerance to xenophobe governments (Orbán) Legitimatization of far-right discourse To bargain number of refugees To welcome gold-visas

Recent vote in European Parliament Resolution to create European mechanisms to protect and save human lives in the Mediterranean For: 288 Against: 290 (Comment: the far-right does not have 288 members of Parliament, the “traditional” right is responsible for the defeat of this resolution)

Some questions of strategy for the revolutionary left

Conservatives/liberals and Socialdemocrats are both at the core of the existing European project in Greece and Portugal, Social-Democracy was not an accomplice but an active member of adjustments Punishment of weak countries Blackmail No place for dissent within EU is an authoritarian project

Elements of instability and decomposition of EU Ultimatum to Greece (2015) Refugee “crisis” – 2015 – Brexit referendum (2016) Rise of fascism in Austria, Eastern Europe and Italy Catalonia: referendum for independence and repression (2017) Brexit

Deadlock At each crisis, the “solution” has been to create more unelected institutions and bodies that totally escape control of European citizens or to elaborate more treaties The crisis of legitimacy of the EU increases: everywhere far-right parties have been created The Left is (still) weak

Strategy of disobedience To strongly oppose EU institutions and treaties and EU federalism - EU is not reformable from within its framework To break with EU: to reject treaties that prevent public investment, social services reinforcement and public control of strategic sectors To regain “sovereignty” : no to national budgets with supervision of the European Commission or Eurogroup Solidarity among popular classes of different countries The Radical Left must lead the discontent and opposition to EU, otherwise populists will fill that void

Challenges/Questions for discussion Does class struggle exist at European level or only within each country? Nationalism vs. “europeanism”, How to fight both your own bourgeoisie AND the diktats of the EU? Is “Another Europe is possible” a strong enough transitional demand? What project of transformation for the European Left? Which alliances?