On 14 and 15 December 2023, the European Council decided to reform the Union. What guides the reform? This talk advocates for republicanism, building upon the principles laid out in Article 2 of the Treaty on European Union (TEU). Republicanism, already deeply embedded within Union’s law, offers a coherent and principled approach. The Commission’s 2017 White Paper on the Future of Europe underscores it, positing the republican Ventotene Manifesto as the pivotal source for the EU’s path and future. The Commission’s publication ‘70 Years of EU Law’, published in 2022, culminates by delineating avenues on how to advance the Union’s civic transformation. The talk explores this European renaissance of republicanism, while critiquing certain aspects of the Commission’s understanding.
The talk from Prof. Dr. Armin von Bogdandy develops this thesis in four distinct steps: theory, evidence, defense, and practice. The first step developes a contemporary concept of republicanism. Building upon this theoretical foundation, the second step presents and organizes evidence to support the thesis, drawing from a range of proposals, debates, legal acts, and judgments. The third step deepens the argument by demonstrating its compatibility with the core republican topics of self-determination, virtue, and of a public forum. The final step outlines the implications of this renaissance for future academic work, considering competing approaches.
The lecture by Prof. Dr Armin von Bogdandy will take place on 22 January at 6 pm in the PEG building of Goethe University Frankfurt on the first floor, room 131.