The progression of the twenty-first century has led many to believe that the European Union’s heyday is over and that European power is on the wane. As the world’s geopolitical and geoeconomic plates move and the fulcrum of world power shifts towards the eastern half of Eurasia – and the Pacific rim in particular – historians speak more confidently of the end of the European age. Today, a changing balance of power runs alongside the rise of European risk-aversion, resulting in a reactive, accommodationist and ‘small power’ mentality in the European Union. The growth of European resistance to the use of military power; an inability to tackle the challenge of multiculturalism; and a loss of confidence in the superiority of the constitutional, democratic and universal welfare state – but also a lack of resolve towards socio-economic reform – has further confounded this malaise. Europeans have lost their strategic foresight, political vision and pro-activeness, which hinders any further political unification on our continent.
 
However, we are certain that European decline is not inevitable. We are sure that, through good policy and deeper integration, the European Union can retain the means and wherewithal to be a major force in the modern world. We conclude that, after a period of internal European introspection during the implementation of the Treaty of Lisbon, the time has come for Europeans to step-up, lest our wealth, security and power be washed down the drain.

With this in mind, we have formed the Group on Grand Strategy to provide a visible platform and a home for a new generation of European strategic thinkers. We strive to advance the European interest through the education of the public in the subject of the European Union’s foreign, security, economic and military policies. We aim to show not only why Europeans should pursue a grand strategy through the European Union, but also debate the direction that that strategy should take. As such, we welcome debate on international politics and grand strategy in a very broad sense, insofar as we desire to understand the approaches taken by the other great powers – as well as developments in the wider world system – to articulate a sound policy of our own.

The Group on Grand Strategy therefore works at the intersection between policy and academia, aiming to elevate strategic thinking and improve the substance of government policy through concrete proposals for reform. We do not apologise for the fact that much of our work will be adventurous, but we are firmly committed to academic critique and scholarly originality, intellectual depth and complete impartiality. We hope these traits will assist with the revitalisation of European strategic policy, to ensure that the European Union’s future is as bright and bold as its past.

James Rogers
Luis Simón