ABSTRACT
The European Union (EU) is the political centre of gravity of Europe, but it carries little weight in the world. Europe has enormous power potential: the EU is the world’s biggest economy, it has the most egalitarian society, and except for the United States it spends the most on defence. The declining great power, the fast rising great power, and the great power that sees its position threatened by that rise might all opt for a drastic course of action. Once adopted, it takes power to implement strategy: the political, economic, and military power to entice, to convince, and, if necessary, to coerce others to act according to our interests. Sometimes, however, coercion will be inevitable, by threatening or using hard economic power or, exceptionally, military force, if there is no other way to guarantee our vital interests.
