European Union must keep moving forward or it will fall

Talking of bigger members placing there own interests as the top priority, Bassin gave the example of the recent military strike on Iraq. quot;Britain went its own way without consulting the Union,quot; he rued. He said that Europe was suffering from a quot;leadership problemquot;. quot;Whereas Germany is not nuclear, France and Great Britain are too weak alone and too quarrelsome together. The small and medium powers trust the US more than European powers,quot; he stated. quot;American and European relations are extremely good and the EU is big enough for the US to take notice. The US will not try to stage a coup in its own interest,quot; he said.

Bassin said that several Eastern European countries would join the EU this year, which would in turn change the strategic position of security in Europe. quot;The biggest threat in this century has been of nuclear war or a world war. Now, this threat is diminishing. The new war will be a mix of elements of war, organised crime, environmental problems, drug trafficking, smuggling of arms and competition for raw material, soil and water,quot; he said. quot;Because of the new threat picture, the role of state as a power machinery is changing. Globalisation is globalising conflicts,quot; he added.

Bassin added that in wake of the new threats, crisis management would be one of the most important tasks.quot;The EU in spite of masquerading as a purely economic organisation had a political premise in its creation,quot; he stated. He said Finland was active in improving crisis management capabilities of the European Union.