Ad
The real new story distracting us from the current crisis mood had better be about what Europe and its member states really need: strong European defence, a cleaner continent, social equality and economic prosperity

Column

What Europe's 1848 revolutions can tell us about 2024

"All governments face insoluble problems — that is what governments are for. It is in the nature of political problems that they cannot be 'solved'."

This quote could refer to climate change, the war in Ukraine or any other of the major crises local, national and European authorities grapple with today. But it does not.

No, these intriguing lines come from a book that, instead of dealing with the present, describes events that happened almost two centuries ago:

Get EU news that matters

Back our independent journalism by becoming a supporting member

Already a member? Login here

Disclaimer

The views expressed in this opinion piece are the author’s, not those of EUobserver

Author Bio

Caroline de Gruyter is a Europe correspondent and columnist for the Dutch newspaper NRC. She is also a columnist for Foreign Policy and De Standaard. This piece is adapted from a column for NRC.

The real new story distracting us from the current crisis mood had better be about what Europe and its member states really need: strong European defence, a cleaner continent, social equality and economic prosperity

Tags

Author Bio

Caroline de Gruyter is a Europe correspondent and columnist for the Dutch newspaper NRC. She is also a columnist for Foreign Policy and De Standaard. This piece is adapted from a column for NRC.

Ad

Related articles

Ad
Ad