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Former European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said the EU is not effective enough in international politics and that its current structure can no longer respond to rapid global developments.
Speaking to Belgium’s La Premiere radio, Borrell said countries that support deeper political, economic and military integration within the EU should form their own core structure.
“A union within the union should be built,” Borrell said.
Borrell said the 27-member bloc struggles to make effective decisions because of its unanimity mechanism.
He said trying to act by consensus holds the EU back and argued that countries willing to move further should have a structure that allows them to act faster.
“A structure should be established where a few countries that really want to move forward can move faster,” he said.
Borrell said the current EU was not designed for today’s world.
“Decision-making rules are not compatible with the acceleration of history. In very fast-moving and extremely important events, we still try to decide unanimously and almost never reach an agreement,” he said.
Borrell said the EU was not influential enough in international affairs.
“We are not effective enough in international politics,” he said.
Commenting on developments in the Middle East, Borrell said U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran were “against international law.”
“You either care about international law or you do not. This war was not launched in response to an imminent threat and was not authorized by the United Nations Security Council,” he said.
Borrell also said Spain had taken a clear position by not allowing U.S. bases on its territory to be used for those operations.
“Spain clearly says I will not allow American bases to be used in a way that enables these wars to continue,” he said.
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