After Europe: How to Face the Specter of Populism

2019/01/24

The EU has evolved so much that it has become "Galapagosized." This book, which points this out while citing the failure of Japan's mobile phone business, is the Japanese translation of "After Europe" by Ivan Krastev, a Bulgarian intellectual who experienced the Eastern European revolutions and the dissolution of the Soviet Union. I translated it along with three other researchers. I first encountered the original book when I used it as a reference while writing "European Populism: Can the EU Division Be Avoided?" (Chikuma Shinsho). Recalling the collapse of the former Habsburg Empire, Mr. Krastev uses deep insight to discuss whether the EU—which has faced a succession of crises including the Euro crisis, the migrant/refugee issue, and Brexit—can avoid disintegration while falling into an "After Europe" situation where it has lost its "teleological appeal."

In this book, the 2015 European migrant crisis is specifically positioned as a "migration revolution." Voters in EU countries felt a fear that the mass influx of migrants and refugees would take over their homelands and threaten their way of life. Far-right populist parties, incensed by this "migration revolution," launched a "counter-revolution" in various countries. In 9 out of the 28 EU countries, this "counter-revolution" is succeeding through participation in government or confidence-and-supply agreements following elections. Furthermore, in the May 2019 European Parliament elections, populist parties are expected to take more than a quarter of the 705 seats, infiltrating the EU's major institutions. In such a disadvantaged position, how should an EU based on liberal values respond? The EU needs to demonstrate its ability to survive. Rather than trying to overthrow the enemy, it should exhaust them while incorporating some of their policies. This is the message of the book.

Up until now, I have researched rules, institutions, policies, and international relations using the EU as a case study, asking how and to what extent multiple nations can coexist across borders. Since approaching the age of 60, my goal has been to publish one book for the general public every year, utilizing my accumulated knowledge in addition to academic papers and specialized books. Translating excellent foreign books like this one into Japanese is part of that effort. I hope to continue researching and writing until just before I pass away.

After Europe: How to Face the Specter of Populism

Written by Ivan Krastev, Supervised/Translated by Katsuhiro Shoji

Iwanami Shoten

144 pages, 1,900 yen (excluding tax)

*Affiliations and titles are as of the time of publication.