A strategic Union to cope with the multipolar challenge

BRICS, IBSA or BASIC are just a few of the many acronymic clubs of emerging powers. They seem to be everywhere and nowhere at the same time. They demand recognition of their new status but they decline any responsibility attached to it. They challenge the Western model and its values, but they fail to present a credible alternative. They push for a reform of the multilateral system but they disagree beyond that general formulation. In the meantime, global challenges continue to mount and intensify under the combined pressure of globalization and interdependence. And the resolution of these challenges is complicated by the absence of global leadership, a result of the transition to a multipolar world. Welcome to the twenty-first century.

How can Europe cope with the multipolar challenge?