Panel three of the ECR Group Study Days in Vilnius focused on one of the defining strategic questions facing Europe’s conservatives: should the future of the European Union be based on a federal superstate or on cooperation between sovereign nations?

The panel discussion, moderated by former Vice-President of the European Parliament Ryszard Czarnecki, brought together ECR Co-Chairs Nicola Procaccini and Patryk Jaki, Lithuanian MEP Aurelijus Veryga and Italian ECR MEP Stefano Cavedagna.

Opening the debate, Ryszard Czarnecki asked participants which vision would better serve Europe’s future: a centralised European federation or a Europe built around sovereign nations and democratic accountability. He argued that conservatives today are in a much stronger political position than in previous years and stressed that the debate about Europe’s future direction is increasingly becoming a mainstream political question across the continent.

Patryk Jaki warned that the European Union has undergone a long process of political centralisation that has weakened competitiveness, reduced democratic transparency and distanced power from citizens. “Many people still believe in the vision of a kind of ‘United States of Europe’. But wherever centralisation advances, Europe becomes weaker — whether in competitiveness, security or public trust,” he said.

He argued that Europe’s economic decline, rising energy prices and migration problems are closely linked to overly centralised policymaking and ideological regulation.

“Citizens increasingly do not know who is responsible for decisions in the European Union. That lack of accountability is one of the core weaknesses of the current system,” he added.

Jaki also argued that Europe must return to the original idea of cooperation between nations rather than pursuing political expansion through institutions and court rulings. He said that Europe becomes more competitive and more attractive when it focuses on trade, economic cooperation and democratic legitimacy instead of constant centralisation.

Nicola Procaccini stressed that conservatives are not opposed to the European Union, but to the idea that the European project should evolve into a political superstate detached from nations and identities.

“As conservatives, the idea of homelands is central to our vision of Europe. We are often described as Eurosceptics, but in reality we believe in the original idea – a Union of homelands. Today, even this obvious idea sometimes appears controversial because the vision of a European superstate has gradually replaced the original concept of European cooperation,” Procaccini said.

He argued that even the political language surrounding the debate has become confused.

“Those who push for more centralisation often describe themselves as federalists, while in reality they are concentrating power further and further away from Europe’s nations and citizens,” he added.

He argued that the original idea of European cooperation has increasingly been replaced by centralising ambitions that confuse federalism with concentration of power.

“Today, even defending the obvious role of nations in Europe is sometimes presented as radical. But nations remain the democratic and cultural foundation of Europe,” he added.

Aurelijus Veryga argued that many Europeans increasingly feel exhausted by overregulation and political centralisation imposed from Brussels.

“People are tired of over-bureaucratisation. Many feel like the frog in slowly boiling water — the pressure keeps increasing while the decision makers pretend nothing is happening,” Veryga said. He stressed that conservatives across Europe need to defend each other more actively when national governments come under political or institutional pressure from Brussels.

“If conservatives do not address real concerns, voters will eventually turn to more radical alternatives. We must not allow ourselves to be silenced again,” he added.

Stefano Cavedagna argued that Europe must remain rooted in the identities, traditions and Christian civilisation of its nations rather than moving towards an ideological federalist project.

“Europe exists for the European peoples, their cultures and their values. Cooperation between sovereign nations is fundamentally different from building a centralised European state,” Cavedagna said.

Referring to the federalist Ventotene Manifesto, he criticised what he described as a long-standing political ambition to weaken the role of nation states in Europe.

“The key question is not only how Europe functions institutionally, but also what Europe actually is and what civilisation it wants to preserve. You cannot build Europe by weakening the very nations, cultures and traditions that created Europe in the first place” he added.

The debate also focused on the role of the European Court of Justice, democratic accountability inside the EU institutions, the limits of further political integration and the need for stronger solidarity between conservative governments and movements across Europe.

The ECR Group Study Days continue in Vilnius until Friday with further discussions on demographics, transatlantic relations, security and Europe’s strategic future.