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THE STATE OF THE EUROPEAN UNION
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establish a genuinely fair tax policy to finance this investment and produc-
tion. But it does not. It could act as a community of nations who stand
side-by-side to tackle the refugee crisis. It could –and should– comply with
international law, the Geneva Convention, the New York Protocol, the EU
Charter of Fundamental Rights and the European Convention on Human
Rights. But it does not. It could develop a genuine European security poli-
cy to counter threats that clearly transcend national security. But there is
not the slightest hint of cooperation or a unified direction to tackle terror-
ism and the deadly strategy of Islamic State.
All this leads us to the central obstacle that must be overcome to pro-
vide sufficient means to respond with what the peoples of Europe expect
from their politicians: the implementation of decisive measures. When all
is said and done, this is a political crisis, whose solution requires, above all
else, political action. It is an institutional problem, underpinned by the
dynamic described in the contribution by Jonás Fernández, which creates
obstacles to action by the European Parliament and Commission, precise-
ly at a moment when political will should strengthen them.
At a time when history appears to be moving in the opposite direction,
the call for more Europe may fall on weary ears. However, we must not
give in to this weariness. Europe’s political crisis lies not in the lack of
strengths of the EU but in the lack of badly needed leadership. As Ana
Belén Sánchez and Vicente Palacio show, we have seen such leadership in
other areas, such as the fight against climate change. The crisis, or crises,
we are now facing are the result of a lack of coordination and the short-
sightedness of national politics, not of a European politics that remains
markedly absent.