The European Union’s requirement for unanimous agreement on security issues is hindering its ability to act decisively, Dainius Žalimas, a member of the European Parliament, said in an interview with espreso.tv.
Žalimas pointed to two key problems. The first is political gridlock. “We see that states like Hungary sometimes create various obstacles,” he stated, emphasizing that a single country can stall the entire Union’s progress.
The second is a gap between policy and action. While the EU has treaties that mandate common defense, Žalimas noted that “it is still unknown how to apply it in practice,” a situation exacerbated by the political neutrality of some members and an overarching lack of political will to make difficult decisions.
Exceptions might only apply to final decisions, such as the start of military operations, he added.
