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The annual conference of the Institute for European Politics (IEP) in 2022 focused on overcoming the poly-crisis in Europe. Representatives from universities and think tanks discussed the future of Europe in terms of foreign policy, the rule of law, the economy, and climate policy. The conclusions of the conference varied, but everyone agreed that Europe is facing a turning point and that political decisions and possibly reforms are needed to address the current challenges. Germany must redefine its role in Europe and pursue a more progressive European policy. The annual conference also addressed the security and defense architecture in Europe and the role of the European Union (EU) in global security policy. It was emphasized that the EU must strengthen its presence as an actor in security policy, particularly in Africa. Cooperation with NATO was positively evaluated, and a scenario was outlined in which the EU is responsible for territorial defense while NATO takes on other areas such as energy or cyber security. Challenges such as the institutional design of EU security and defense policy and the consolidation of cooperation with NATO were discussed. The role of Germany and its announced "turning point" in security policy was also highlighted. [Extracted from the article]

At international climate conferences, the European Union (EU) and its member states both are negotiating partners. The EU signs the treaties to protect the climate, the member states ratify and translate them into national policy. Based on the literature on actorness, we identify different dimensions in which the EU's actor quality is articulated. Actorness has internal dimensions, such as the transfer of responsibilities, and external dimensions, such as the recognition as a contracting party by other states. Actorness, however, cannot be grasped by analysing institutions alone, but also arises discursively and situationally. We trace EU actorness for four critical points in time in international climate policy and can thus show that actorness in the policy field has increased overall over time, but that the full potential has not yet been exploited. In some dimensions, a temporary decline in actorness could be observed, especially at the Copenhagen summit. The analysis of actorness can also contribute to the explanation of a possible lack of effectiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The European Union's recovery plan, called NextGenerationEU, was agreed upon in spring 2021 to respond to the socio-economic consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic. Member states have created national plans that have been evaluated by the European Commission. Most countries have already received positive evaluations, while some have experienced delays. The plans include reforms and investments to achieve climate and digital policy goals. The European Commission is monitoring the implementation of the plans and expects them to potentially increase the EU's gross domestic product by up to 1.5 percent by 2024. [Extracted from the article]