Globalization
Soft Power & Trade
Soft power is a concept that can be defined by international diplomacy, culture, communications, and foreign assistance. According to the IfG-Monocle Soft Power Index, of the first twenty ranked countries, more than half are part of the European Union. This can be explained by the number and importance of Europe’s diplomatic network, not only as a whole but as separate countries as well. Soft power is an important component in education; the number of foreign students that wish to study in Europe is extremely high and resonates the strong emission of European culture abroad. And thanks to Globalization, foreign students have an easy access and are furthermore welcome and incited to come. European higher education programs are now encompassing the world in their curriculums such as offering options with a strong accent on languages and foreign culture and requiring a trip abroad to validate a diploma. Europe has a strong communication system as well, with radio and television channels originating from European countries that are available and watched all over the world. Countries in Europe being quite rich, foreign assistance is high, and that also plays along with soft power by having a higher influence sphere in the world.
The picture shows the European commission's aid to countries in need by food donations displays an aspect of soft power
It is important to note that soft power is often referred jointly with foreign policy as the two somewhat fit together in their defining terms. It is through foreign policy that government practices the most of soft power. Soft power though has and still is often criticized; its critics often denounce it as being useless. The skeptics of this concept often come back to saying that hard power, or military force and economic incentives, are more important and the only ways to impose in the political realm. This leads to the next point which is to be studied in order to comprehend Europe’s Globalization: trade.
Trade has opened Europe up to globalization as goods from other parts of the world are now available to Europeans and vice versa. Europe is a free trade area, meaning that its 27 members have signed a free-trade agreement entailing neither tariffs nor import quotas, nor preferences on goods and services traded between them. This considerably helps European countries export their goods throughout Europe with no problem or extra tariffs. This allows countries then to concentrate on global export trading goods over the world for a high GDP (Gross Domestic Product). Lately though, Europe has known a decline in cultural exports and has been surpassed by Asia.
By Allia Georges
.
Immigration:
Immigration to Europe increased from the 1980s onward, most of them are people from developing countries wanting to escape either war, oppression or poverty. Some EU countries saw a rapid growth in immigration after World War II until the 1970s. Most European nations have sizable immigrant populations, many of non-European origin. Furthermore, the 1985 Schengen Agreement permits a free travel within Europe. Citizens of European Union member states and their families have the right to live and work anywhere within the EU. Nevertheless, all holders of valid residence permits of a Schengen State have the unrestricted right to travel within the Schengen Area for tourist purposes only, and for up to three months. Moreover a large proportion of immigrants in western European states have come from former eastern states in the 1990s, especially in Spain, Greece, Germany, Italy, Portugal and the United Kingdom. There are frequently specific migration patterns, with geography, language and culture playing a role. Immigration is uncontrollable and of undefined proportions. However, some countries' party seek to limit and reduce immigration such as France, Italy, United Kingdom, Germany, Switzerland etc... Those countries think that riots and terrorist incident are due to the growth of immigration in their countries. The most frequently used arguments against immigration policies center are the high unemployment rates and tendencies to discriminations and rascim among immigrants from non-western countries.
Job opportunities:
In 2000 the Lisbon Strategy was launched, its aim was to make Europe "the most competitive and dynamic knowledge-based economy in the world, capable of sustainable economic growth with more and better jobs and greater social cohesion". Since then Europe has been affected by the economical crisis, lots of industries and factories are closing and the unemployment rate is increasing. But European Union’s member states, committed to reduce unemployment, are pursuing reforms to improve employment levels and stepping up efforts to increase youth employment. Leaders states committed to move rapidly on the Commission's concrete proposals in the 2012 employment package. The employment package highlights the priorities of addressing youth unemployment and increasing the mobility of workers within the EU, and encourages member states to fulfill a number of initiatives at national level to tackle unemployment. In June 2013, leaders agreed to strengthen initiatives to help young people find jobs across borders.
Geopolitics:
The issues that affect geopolitics are hard to define. They mostly consist of the total sum of a given area’s statistics, nationality, military power, demographics, technology, and economics: everything that might have an affect on the area.
Geopolitical developments in the European Union’s members now impact the day-to-day lives of all Europeans. Europe splits between East and West, North and South. The specific borders and regions that define them have shifted over the centuries, but there are some areas that maintained the character of frontiers longer than others. Before the European Union was made of 15 countries, which brought up together 380 million inhabitants. Since the 1rst May 2004, 10 countries were added to the European Union, most of those countries are located in the Southern Europe, such as Poland, Estonia… Under the impact of accelerated globalization, the geopolitics of Europe's borders and border regions has become an area of critical interest. The progressive enlargement of the EU has positioned its borders at the heart of recent discussions on the changing nature of the EU, the meaning of 'Europe' and what constitutional shape a more politically unified Europe might take.
Moreover the language spoken is also an essential factor for the communication between countries. In Europe, none of the countries have the same language like in China so Europe uses English as the international language to communicate. However French is also playing an important role in the negotiation, since the 18th-century it was often spoken in Europe. French is one of the six languages used for international negotiations.
Furthermore on 2-4 April 2008, there was NATO’s largest-ever annual summit. The leadership of every Alliance country, as well as the presidents of Afghanistan, Georgia, Ukraine, Russia and more gathered in the second largest building in the world, the Ceausescu Palace. NATO and European Union flags were flying outside the building representing a great achievement: the freedom of the former Eastern bloc countries, and the expansion of partnership in security to most of the European continent. Europe is a vast continent Geopolitics is also a way to keep the relationships between countries for each other in a good position in order to benefit from it; they must keep a good friendship because nothing is worst than cold geopolitical imperatives.
Furthermore some countries from European Union such as Germany, France, Italy, and United Kingdom, are a part of the G20.This group was formally inaugurated in September 1999, and held its first meeting in December 1999. G20 members can decide each year to invite a limited number of other countries (5 normally, of which Spain is a permanent guest). The G-20 also includes the Member States of the G-7 (Canada, United States, Britain, France, Italy, Japan and Germany), plus Russia, as well as other strategic countries. In addition, the EU is represented by Belgium, which currently holds the presidency.
By Jade Maillou
The map below shows the members of the G20