The Schuman Declaration
In 2025, we celebrate the 75th anniversary of the Schuman Declaration, an excellent opportunity to reflect on the principle of solidarity, which is central to this historic declaration.
The Foundations of the European Union
The Schuman Declaration laid the foundation for the establishment of the European Union and, in the aftermath of war and nationalism, emphasized the need for a united Europe as a guarantee for lasting peace. Schuman called for concrete actions of cooperation between nations as an expression of de facto solidarity, beginning with the joint management of coal and steel among former enemies.
Since then, solidarity in Europe has grown and evolved. Today, it reaches far beyond the economy, shaping social policy, regional development, climate action, and crisis response. Yet solidarity remains contested, challenged by political divisions, nationalism, and global pressures.
Seventy-five years after the Schuman Declaration, we stand at another crucial juncture where the European project must be defended and strengthened.
To mark the anniversary of the Schuman Declaration, UCSIA is organizing two public events on 5 May:
Why is the EU European?
Lecture by Prof Andrea Sangiovanni
How should we approach the idea of European solidarity today? As the European Union faces internal divisions and external pressures, it is worth asking not only how we cooperate — but also who is allowed to be part of that cooperation in the first place.
European-only
What makes the EU a European Union? Why are countries that are not European automatically excluded from joining the Union (like Morocco in 1987)?
Surprisingly, this question has been largely overlooked. And yet it lies at the very core of Europe’s self-understanding. We generally believe that domestic, public associations (e.g., universities) that exclude potential members on the basis of race, for example, violate anti-discrimination norms. But how is the European-only exclusion rule any different?
The history of ‘Europe’ as an idea — an idea that was used first to demarcate Christendom (against Islam), then, in the Enlightenment, civilization (against barbarism), and, closely related, the white race (from other races) — brings this question into much sharper focus.
Prof Andrea Sangiovanni’s lecture will attempt to answer this question, and examine how the idea of ‘Europe’ as a project can be justified. He will conclude with a provocation: Why not abandon the European-only membership rule? What are the implications for our understanding of the grounds of solidarity among members of the Union?
Andrea Sangiovanni
Professor of Philosophy at King’s College London
His main areas of research are in contemporary moral, legal, and political philosophy. He has several publications on the topic of European solidarity and is currently working on an ERC-funded project (Consolidator Grant, 2018-2024) on solidarity in Europe. His latest book (published in 2024 at Manchester University Press) is called ‘Solidarity: Nature, Grounds, and Value’.
Chair P.W. Segers
This lecture is part of the P.W. Segers Chair.
Each year around Rerum Novarum, we programme a lecture on social policy in memory of the prominent politician Paul Willem Segers.
Het schedule
-
8:00 p.m.
Welcome by Dr Erik De Bom, Deputy Director at UCSIA -
8:10 p.m.
Keynote ‘European Solidarity – Why is the EU European?’
by Prof Andrea Sangiovanni, King’s College London -
8:50 p.m.
Discussion with the audience -
9:00 p.m.
Reception -
10:00 p.m.
Ending
