Politics and diplomacy: lessons from Donald Tusk's time as President of the European Council

Hagemann, Sara ORCID: 0000-0002-0104-1782 (2019) Politics and diplomacy: lessons from Donald Tusk's time as President of the European Council. European Journal of International Law. ISSN 0938-5428

Text (Politics and diplomacy) - Accepted Version Download (60kB)

• Author

Abstract

The 2020 COVID pandemic has posed an unprecedented challenge to Europe’s economies, societies and political institutions. Finding solutions for the immediate and longer-term impact of the pandemic requires collaboration between the European Union’s (EU) member states and leadership from their governments at both national and European levels. The President of the European Council is central to this process, as he leads and facilitates the collaboration between the heads of states and governments. Looking back at the lessons from Donald Tusk’s time as President of the European Council from 2014 to 2019, this article argues that Tusk made an immensely important political contribution to the EU as he set the tone for a liberal and progressive agenda at a time of significant threat from populist and pro-Russian voices in Europe. However, with the recent political and institutional developments in the EU, and based on the insights from Mr Tusk’s successes and challenges, the article also argues that the role of the European Council President today requires strong brokering skills and leadership behind the scenes more than an openly political and public figure.

Item Type:	Article
Official URL:	https://academic.oup.com/ejil
Additional Information:	© 2020 The Author
Divisions:	European Institute
Subjects:	J Political Science > JN Political institutions (Europe) J Political Science > JZ International relations
Date Deposited:	29 Nov 2019 10:33
Last Modified:	06 Apr 2024 22:45
URI:	http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/102691

Actions (login required)

View Item