The Macedonians are not sure
whether they are Serbs, Bulgarians, or Macedonians. The Moldovans wish
they were Romanians. The Romanians secretly wish they were Hungarians.
The Austrians are sometimes Germans and sometimes Balkanians. Many
Ukrainians and all Belarusians would like to resurrect the evil empire,
the USSR.
This identity crisis affects the European Union. Never has Europe been
more fractured. It is now a continent of four speeds. The rich core of
the European Union, notably Germany and France, constitutes its engine.
The mendicant members - from Greece to Portugal - enjoy inane dollops
of cash from Brussels but have next to no say in Union matters.
The shoo-in candidates - Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic and,
maybe, Slovakia, if it keeps ignoring the outcomes of its elections -
are frantically distancing themselves from the queue of beggars,
migrants and criminals that awaits at the pearly gates of Brussels. The
Belgian Curtain -between central European candidates and east European
aspirants - is falling fast and may prove to be far more divisive and
effective than anything dreamt up by Stalin.
The fourth group comprises real candidates - such as Bulgaria - and
would be applicants, such as Romania, Macedonia, Albania, Yugoslavia,
Bosnia-Herzegovina and even Croatia.
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