madam president europe day this week was supposed to be a celebration of european national identity
it is not
it marks the ongoing replacement of european nation states with an eu supranational government meaning above nation states
this is in contrast to intergovernmental where nation states freely cooperate but do not cede powers to a higher central authority
the libyan no-fly zone illustrates the difference
the intergovernmental united nations agreed a no-fly zone pioneered by nation states such as britain france and the united states whilst nation states such as germany and russia abstained for their own valid reasons
the intergovernmental nato is now conducting that operation through voluntary participation
in contrast the supranational eu vigorously opposed david cameron's proposal for a no-fly zone
it is ironic that the red baroness herself cathy ashton stood against this no-fly proposal her aide reportedly calling it headline grabbing desperation
the lesson of this is that principal nations act intergovernmentally while supranational bodies merely fiddle as libya burns
