By Armin Sijamić
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said last week that the West as we knew it no longer exists and that Brussels must play a role in shaping the new world order.
The announcement of the end of entire eras has most often belonged to scientists, journalists, and revolutionaries. In the last few decades, Francis Fukuyama announced the "end of history", Immanuel Wallerstein the end of the dominance of the capitalist West - a consequence of the collapse of the rival communist USSR, and now many are talking about the "end of globalization" due to the policies of US President Donald Trump.
Representatives of the European Union are not known for "strong" statements, aware of the complexity of the system they belong to and the fact that Brussels' policy is limited by bureaucracy and divisions among member states.
Therefore, Von der Leyen's statement is a surprise and heralds a awakening of Brussels, faced with the fact that the world is changing and that the United States, China, Russia, and other countries in Asia and Latin America will seize every opportunity that presents itself at any given moment.
Problems in the West - Donald Trump
"The West as we knew it no longer exists," Von der Leyen said in an interview with the German newspaper Die Zeit, referring to the policies of US President Trump.
Von der Leyen says she has always been a "convinced Atlanticist" and a "great friend of the USA," but that Trump's policy is creating new circumstances. These are "historical changes" that are forcing the European Union to "play a very active role" in shaping the new world order.
Von der Leyen's statement about the future of the European Union is one of a series of similar statements that have come from the old continent and are addressed to the United States, after Trump engaged in the Ukrainian war and moved his positions closer to the Kremlin's stances.
"What we have considered the world order until now is turning into world disorder, caused, among other things, by the struggle for dominance between China and the USA, but of course also by Putin's imperial ambitions," she said. "That is why we need a new, different European Union, ready to step onto the global stage and actively participate in shaping the coming new world order," she added.
The "world disorder" that Von der Leyen mentions is an acknowledgment that the West is rapidly changing and that Washington now views its allies and rivals differently. Washington's new policy can be directed against its closest allies. The actions of US Vice President JD Vance and Elon Musk are the best proof of this.
The Trump administration has largely abandoned confronting rogue regimes. Washington is now bothered by the governments of the United Kingdom and Germany. Musk's criticism of British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and his support for the German opposition AfD is a shock to Europeans.
Real Limitations
From Von der Leyen's words, it is clear that she considers some of the United States' and China's policies dangerous for Brussels. "The positive effect of all this is that I am currently having countless conversations with heads of state and government around the world who want to cooperate with us in creating a new order," she said, citing Canada, India, Malaysia, Indonesia, Mexico, and South American countries as examples.
The European Union, she says, despite Trump's aggressive trade policies, has maintained its strength and become more attractive to other countries due to its predictability and reliability. In other words, Von der Leyen claims that the European Union has the strength and resources to compete with the United States and China, which are in an economic war and competing worldwide.
However, things are not as simple as Von der Leyen claims. Trump's policy towards Ukraine and Russian President Vladimir Putin shows the limits of European powers. Trump and Putin excluded Europeans from negotiations on the European war. French President Emmanuel Macron and Starmer are trying in various ways to impose European powers as a factor in Ukraine, aware that they do not have military power equal to that of the US and Russia.
At the same time, the European Union has problems with access to various raw materials and depends on other countries. Brussels is now extending a hand of cooperation to regional powers, as Von der Leyen pointed out, likely offering predictability compared to Trump and equality compared to China.
Since the European Union has a strong economy and a large market, Brussels could decide the outcome of the economic war between Washington and Beijing. Macron has indirectly pointed this out in various places, in Beijing a few years ago and recently in Washington. During his last visit to the White House, Macron told Trump that he should impose tariffs on China and work with Europeans together in Ukraine and elsewhere.
On the other hand, China wants stronger economic ties worldwide and free trade. Communist China benefits from such a system, as no single country can match it. For comparison, China has almost eight hundred million workers, while the EU and the USA combined have less than eight hundred million inhabitants.
Two weeks ago, Von der Leyen spoke by phone with Chinese Premier Li Qiang, who wants the two sides to "maintain free and open trade".
How to Mobilize Brussels?
Brussels can choose which side to align with, although today almost no one in Europe says it should be China. Anger at Washington over Trump's tariffs is understandable, but it should not be the basis for any policies. After all, Trump's reign will not last forever.
However, the European Union needs mechanisms for action and must seek ways to increase its influence, first in Europe, and then worldwide. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan recently offered this to Brussels, aware of European limitations, for example, in the field of defense.
The European Union's intention to play the role of a younger brother to the great powers has proven to be wrong. For example, reliance on the US military has led to the stagnation of European armies. If the European Union were to choose China's offer of open trade, with reduced US influence, it would quickly find itself in an economic situation similar to that of the United States today.
Europe needs different politicians and new ideas. The European Union under Ursula von der Leyen cannot boast of having shown any of this in recent years, and there are few successes in this area that they can attribute to themselves. But for the slow and bureaucratized Brussels, last week's statements by Von der Leyen sound like a giant step in that direction.
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