ASSESSMENTS
Before the British Vote, Germany Tries to Keep the EU Intact
Feb 26, 2014 | 20:59 GMT
(ALEXANDER VILF/Host Photo Agency via Getty Images)
Summary
The European Union will eventually need to reform its treaties to satisfy some members' demands, but reform may not come soon enough for the United Kingdom. British Prime Minister David Cameron will host German Chancellor Angela Merkel in London on Feb. 27 to discuss the United Kingdom's plans to renegotiate its role in the European Union. If the ruling Conservative Party is re-elected in the British general elections in 2015, Cameron will want the British Parliament to repatriate some powers from Brussels and for national parliaments to have veto power on EU issues, all before the United Kingdom holds a referendum on its EU membership in 2017.
Germany, Europe's largest economic and political power, does not necessarily disagree with enhancing the union's democratic accountability but believes the existing treaties should be reformed only after the European crisis stabilizes — an opinion the French government shares. Berlin is also worried that a renegotiation of the bloc's legal framework could lead to more political fragmentation at a time when Euroskepticism is on the rise.
Merkel will support some of the United Kingdom's requests and will promise to discuss treaty change in the future. Berlin hopes this will enable Cameron to campaign on a promise of EU reform next year and that he will eventually delay or even cancel the referendum.
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