Is the EU still relevant in a world without rules? MEPs debate in The Ring

We are joined by Henrik Dahl, Danish MEP from the European People’s Party (EPP), and Lina Gálvez, Spanish MEP from the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats (S&D). The two MEPs clash over Europe’s geopolitical ambition, the EU’s internal workings, and its relationship with the United States.

“There has never been a rules-based international order. What is new is admitting it,” Henrik Dahl believes. The Danish politician warns that the EU's influence is limited by its reliance on NATO and its tendency to fall back on statements and resolutions rather than action. “Vladimir Putin is not really afraid of resolutions or strongly worded letters,” he says on The Ring.

Lina Gálvez, meanwhile, criticises the EU for failing to live up to its own principles. “If we say we are for multilateralism and international law, we have to act like it,” she says, describing the EU’s response to Venezuela as incoherent.

The discussion also touches on Greenland and NATO, raising difficult questions about Europe’s security guarantees. “Under normal circumstances, if somebody attacked Greenland, we would invoke Article 5,” Dahl notes. “But if the United States attacked Greenland, they are the ones supposed to guarantee it.”

Despite their differences, both MEPs agree on the fact that Europe’s relevance is not guaranteed. “We are going to have to fight for our relevance,” Dahl says, warning that “the new currency is raw power.”

Lina Gálvez argues that EU structures are struggling to keep pace with global change and that unity is essential if Europe is to wield the power it already has as a market and political actor.

Watch The Ring on Euronews TV or in the player above.

The Ring is anchored by Méabh Mc Mahon, produced by Luis Albertos Altarejos and Amaia Echevarria, and edited by Zacharia Vigneron.