The following text contains only the first paragraphs of the publication. To read the full publication, please click here or download the pdf on the top right.
In the latest Emerging Middle Powers survey, most experts from Brazil, India and South Africa were pessimistic about the development of relations between high-income and low- and middle-income countries (Körber-Stiftung, 2025). In the same survey, over 80 per cent said the West had lost credibility as a “defender of global norms”. Europe’s restrictive migration policy and its stance on Israel – often cited as examples of a selective application of international law – are key drivers of these perceptions. While this problem is not unique to the EU, it is more serious than a mere reputational issue – it is becoming a strategic liability.
This weakening of the EU’s credibility comes as it is seeking to renew and diversify its partnerships while also confronting numerous external and internal challenges. Domestically, political fragmentation, a substantial loss of public trust in institutions and a clear rightward shift are currently threatening a core belief on which the EU was founded: that peace, prosperity and stability are inseparable from values such as democracy, the rule of law, multilateralism and human rights. This idea can still be found in the Political Guidelines of the European Commission for 2024–2029, which depicts these values as existential for the Union’s future.
To continue reading, please click here or download the pdf on the top right.
