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Is EU Losing Cohesion in Fight Against COVID-19?

Jela de Franceschi

   Europe is currently the epicenter of the deadly coronavirus pandemic,
   with more than 150,000 confirmed cases and thousands of deaths. As the
   number of cases soars across the continent, observers are questioning
   whether the 27-member European Union can remain cohesive in the fight
   against the infection. They note that Europe's resilience and
   cooperation have taken a big knock amid the outbreak.

   In a speech on March 11, German Chancellor Angela Merkel acknowledged
   the virus caught the continent off guard.
   "When the virus is out there," and the population has no immunity, and
   no vaccination or therapy exists," she said, "then a high
   percentage--experts say 60 to 70 percent of the population--will be
   infected, so long as this remains the case." Merkel herself is in
   self-quarantine as a precaution after coming into contact with a
   physician who has tested positive for COVID-19.
   Merkel has closed some of Germany's borders, nullifying the Schengen
   Agreement of freedom of movement of people and goods throughout Europe.
   Other EU members have also taken steps to counter the infection.

   Schengen, viewed by many as essential to creating a unified continent,
   covers a population of over 420 million people and an area of 4,312,099
   square kilometers.

   But some critics say individual actions by EU members could tear the
   bloc apart.

   "These crises, instead of having the effect of pulling Europe closer
   together, have strengthened the individual member states at the expense
   of the EU institutions. To various degrees, each one of them has
   pursued its own foreign, economic, and social policies," Carnegie
   Europe expert Judy Dempsey noted in a recent article.

   But others point out that Merkel's measure is only provisional.

   "EU member states are temporarily closing national borders, just as
   many other countries around the world are banning entry by
   non-citizens. Once the pandemic eases, I expect Schengen rules to be
   reinstated, although the EU's external borders may well be tightened, a
   process already begun in response to the flow of migrants and
   refugees," says Charles Kupchan, former presidential advisor for Europe
   during the administration of President Barack Obama.

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