The Nobel Prize, then what?

The award of the Nobel Peace Prize to the EU has sparked a mixture of enthusiasm and of criticism which needs to be put into perspective. This is the purpose of this Viewpoint of Notre Europe – Jacques Delors Institute by Yves Bertoncini and António Vitorino, which is based on three main complementary observations:

• It is right to welcome the historic job of reconciliation initiated by the European construction.
• The euro zone, set up to consolidate peace, is more than ever a factor for stability.
• We now need to move on from “peace in unity” to “unity is strength”.

The European elections in June 2014 will be a key moment in this perspective, 100 years after the start of “World War I” – which was also one of the last great episodes of carnage on European soil, thanks to the founding fathers’ political genius.