Alessandro Colombo

The World and the Pandemic Alessandro Colombo

In 2020, the pandemic upset our lives and upended the world as we know it - and Europe with it. EU Member States launched an unprecedented 750 billion Next Generation EU recovery package, but then bickered on how to use its funds, or whether to tie them to the respect of the rule of law. Meanwhile, big powers were on the move: from the United States where a newly elected President promises to rekindle diplomacy by "bringing America back" to multilateral forums, to an increasingly assertive China and a looming Russia.

Will 2021 be, at long last, Europe's hour? Or will EU Member States continue to prefer to "put their countries first"?

Is there room for common action on economic coordination, migration, defence, and democracy? Will Europe be able to speak with one voice to its biggest partners and competitors, as well as in regional arenas? The ISPI Report 2021 sets out to answer to all this and more.