BRUSSELS—If the year that was turned out to be daunting, 2016 is shaping up as the European Union’s year of living dangerously.
The cliffhanger to keep Greece from bankruptcy and in the euro currency during high summer was chilling enough, even before nations like Hungary ramped up their rhetoric over the influx of migrants and razor wire border fences were spun out over hundreds of miles, further highlighting the increasing weakness of the EU to speak with one voice.
Still, 2015 mainly involved minor countries with limited economic and political clout punching—and shouting—well above their weight.
The year 2016, however, will center on a juggernaut like Britain and an increasingly assertive Poland, both of which could become much more than a thorn in the EU’s side. An economic recovery that keeps stalling on cooling relations with Moscow doesn’t help. And none of that takes into account the looming possibility of another terror attack that could further damage the soul of the continent.
“The past year was full of unexpected plots and turns and the new year will be no different,” said Professor Hendrik Vos of Ghent University.
