Europe’s role in the global economy: from past order to today’s disorder

This chapter examines the evolution of the European integration process in the context of the global system, from the Bretton Woods regime established under the auspices of the hegemonic country, the United States, to the pandemic. When the hegemonic system collapsed, Europe was forced to define its own integration strategy, which privileged the influence of domestic interests (inward-looking), and to propose a growth model that could make the most of the benefits of integration and innovation. The COVID-19 crisis and the risk of exacerbating the secular stagnation trends that emerged at the end of the last century led Europe to launch NextGenerationEU (NGEU), an innovative recovery plan that activates public investment and structural reforms and is financed by European instruments. In this respect, the environmental and digital transition is the fundamental lever that can effectively contribute to transforming and relaunching the European economy, as was the case in the past with other major EU transformation projects, such as the construction of the single market and monetary union.