In the run-up to the Munich Security Conference (MSC), the Diplomatic Council presents an impressive new book titled „Europe and the Emerging New Global Order” (ISBN 9783-98674-123-5). In the work subtitled „Rethinking Europe’s Security Framework“, 21 renowned authors, all widely recognized experts in their respective fields, provide answers to the pressing questions of European security policy in light of a dynamically changing world order.

The foreword is written by Ambassador Dr. Christoph Heusgen, Chairman of the Munich Security Conference. He writes:

When the founding visionaries of the European Union joined forces to create a new Europe after the devastation of the Second World War, they were driven by one overarching goal: to prevent a recurrence of the brutal conflicts that had marked the continent from 1870 to 1945. They succeeded beyond all expectations. At its core, Europe now enjoys the longest era of peace in its history.

Conflicts are no longer settled on the battlefield but through dialogue in European institutions – the Parliament, the Council, and the Court of Justice. Our destiny is no longer decided by the rule of the strongest, but by the rule of law. This achievement is nothing short of remarkable, yet today we too often take the European Union and the achievements of recent decades for granted.

We cannot afford complacency. This era of peace is not guaranteed to last. Today, forces both internal and external are working to destabilise the foundations of the European Union. The authority of its institutions is being challenged; there is a growing sense that not all member governments share the fundamental values enshrined in the European treaties, and nationalism is on the rise again. These challenges must not be ignored – they demand our recognition and a resolute response.

This book explores these pressing challenges and proposes strategies for effectively addressing them. Europe must adapt its policies, respond to citizens’ concerns, communicate its decisions transparently, and continually remind Europeans why keeping the European dream alive is worth every effort.

Ambassador Dr. Christoph Heusgen has been Chairman of the Munich Security Conference (MSC) since 2022. Heusgen was Permanent Representative of Germany to the United Nations between 2017 and 2021. Prior to this appointment and since 2005, Heusgen was the Foreign Policy and Security Adviser to Federal Chancellor Angela Merkel. He served as Director of the Policy Unit for High Representative Javier Solana in the General Secretariat of the Council of the European Union from 1999 to 2005. Between 1988 and 1999, Heusgen served in various capacities at the Foreign Office in Bonn, including Deputy Director-General for European Affairs from 1997 to 1999 and member of Foreign Minister Klaus Kinkel’s Private Office in charge of European Affairs from 1993 to 1997, serving as Deputy Head since 1994. From 1990 and 1992, he was Deputy Head of the special section in charge of negotiations on the Treaty of Maastricht. He held the position of Private Secretary to the Coordinator for German-French Relations from 1988 to 1990. From 1986 to 1988, Heusgen worked in Germany’s Paris Embassy, having begun his foreign service career in the Press and Economic Affairs Office of his country’s Consulate in Chicago, where he worked from 1983 to 1986. He joined the Foreign Service in 1980. Heusgen is a graduate of the University of Saint Gallen in Switzerland and studied at Georgia Southern College in the United States and at the Sorbonne in Paris. He earned a post-graduate degree from the University of Saint Gallen where he is currently teaching Political Science.

Foto: MSC/Kuhlmann