Europa als Global Player

Europe (especially the EU) with its economic area is embedded as a regional entity in the process of globalization. Since the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty on 1 December 2009 the EU has increasingly emancipated itself from a "political dwarf" to a political "global player". Although Europe's supremacy in world trade slowly begins to crumble, the EU is still a "world trade superpower." The euro has become the second most important reserve currency since its introduction in 2002. The EU maintains - because the Doha Round by the WTO so far was not successful - an extensive network of bilateral free trade agreements (EU's "spaghetti bowl"). To shield against the dangers of globalization, the EU runs several strategies. Firstly, due to the continuing enlargement the EU's internal market is getting larger, which is equivalent to an implicit foreclosure of third countries. This immunization effect is reinforced by the expansion of the euro zone. Secondly, the EU's competition and anti-dumping policy are very effective in ensuring fair competition in the EU internal market. Losers of the globalization get support from EU's globalization fund.