In his address to the IIEA, Luuk van Middelaar explores the context and consequences of the EU’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the Union’s evolution from regulatory body to geopolitical actor, as outlined in his latest work, “Pandemonium: Saving Europe”. If Europe is to meet the future challenge of being in between a resurgent China and an increasingly insular United States, van Middelaar contends that the EU must forge a firm political identity and act as a true power amongst world powers.

About the Speaker:

Luuk van Middelaar is the Professor of Foundations and Practice of the European Union and its Institutions at Leiden University, and one of the world’s foremost experts on European politics. He is a member of the Dutch Advisory Council on International Affairs and Chair of its Commission on European Integration, and is a special advisor to European Commission First Vice-President Frans Timmermans.

In addition to his weekly syndicated column on European and international affairs with the Dutch newspaper, NRC Handelsblad, and the author of: “Politicide” (Historische Uitgeverij, 1999); “The Passage to Europe” (Yale University Press, 2009); “Alarums and Excursions: Improvising Politics on the European Stage” (Agenda Publishing, 2019); and, “Pandemonium: Saving Europe” (Agenda Publishing, 2021).