A Stronger EPP for a Stronger Europe
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- 2026
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Abstract
I accepted the invitation to contribute to this publication with deep gratitude as my generation was the first one to enjoy the ‘smile of history’ after decades of a divided Europe, and both the European Union of Christian Democrats (EUCD) and the European People’s Party (EPP) played crucial roles in this new chapter of our history.
What EUCD membership meant for us
After the fall of the Berlin Wall, Christian Democratic parties on the eastern side of the Iron Curtain were the main drivers of democratisation and the foremost promoters of the ‘European idea’ in their countries. I remember how proud and happy my party, the SKD, was when it became the first Slovenian party to gain membership of the Christian Democratic Union of Central Europe. Established in New York in 1950, this organisation was the framework for cooperation between the historical democratic parties from Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) in exile. It merged with the EUCD in 1992.
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I must mention in this regard how attentive the Austrian ÖVP was during that time. Ministers Alois Mock and Erhard Busek were true Europeans with a good understanding of CEE. The conferences organised by the ÖVP on the Mozart ship in 1989 and 1990 gave the new political parties in the then still Communist countries a unique opportunity to discuss their future in the European context. I remember Václav Havel, József Antall and Franjo Tuđman, among others—there were even Christian Democrats from Moscow. We were finally ‘on stage’, and that resonated strongly in our countries.
There was another reason why the EPP and the EUCD, but also the European Democrat Union (EDU) and the Centrist Democrat International, were important for Slovenia, Croatia and other not yet internationally recognised countries. High-level official visits to Germany, France, Belgium and other major countries were not possible for us, but within the international political organisations we had the chance to talk to other prime ministers on an equal footing. I remember my first talks in private with, among others, Helmut Kohl, Wilfried Martens, Jacques Chirac, Alois Mock and Jacques Santer, who were all leaders with a sense of history and clear visions, and who kept their word.
I will add an anecdote. Soon after I became prime minister, some young European Christian Democrats requested an audience. The chief of protocol told me discreetly, ‘Mr Prime Minister, I think this is not your level; ask a minister to meet them.’ My answer was, ‘These young visitors will be new leaders in Europe in a few years.’ Among those 12 visitors, led by Thomas Jansen, were Enrico Letta, Fredrik Reinfeldt and Klaus Welle. I still don’t regret the decision to meet with people of that ‘level’.
Membership of the EUCD was, for us, a quantum leap, from political non-existence under Communism to being formally recognised within our political family, a family that had a clear vision for Europe’s future. This membership not only meant sharing the same values and principles as our Western counterparts but also served as a clear sign to voters that our parties had partners in the West who supported our ‘European ambition’. It was also significant that Christian Democratic and conservative parties held the majority in the European Council at that time: our political relevance was reinforced by our belonging to the same family. At the same time, the EUCD, the EPP and the EDU also became stronger by accepting new parties from CEE which shared the ambition for a reunited Europe.
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A vision for Europe
There was no need to teach Christian Democratic parties in CEE about European values. Christians in those countries had maintained these values during the Communist era. What our countries needed was not to adapt themselves to Europe by adopting the acquis communautaire but rather to implement these European values. What was missing in Communist countries was respect for the dignity of persons and nations. As Christian Democratic leaders, our ambition was to put the person at the centre of our actions and policies. Our idea then was not just for our countries to become members of the EU, to join the better side of the world, but to be responsible players, drivers of a new quality of politics in Europe. This goal likewise translated into our efforts for the democratisation of our countries, which opened the way to the reunification of Europe.
Two EUCD congresses—Athens 1992 and Ljubljana 1996—paved the way for the merger with the EPP at the congress in Brussels in 1999. I remember how strong the energy was at that time, aimed at constructing a truly united Europe. It was inevitable and wise that the EUCD, the EDU and the EPP merged step by step into a strong political family. Our ambition, however, was not only a strong EPP but also a strong Europe. The idea of Europe that the EPP proposed was visionary, needed and well received.
As president of the SKD, vice-president of the EUCD (1996–9) and vice-president of the EPP (2006–9), I had the chance to act and to observe at first hand how this new cooperation provided added value to our efforts to build a stronger Europe. I remember, too, how CEE countries welcomed the attention of EPP president Wilfried Martens when he visited them in the early 1990s and later the similar attention of Hans-Gert Pöttering in the time of the great enlargement of 2004.
This historic enlargement, which occurred five years after the EPP and EUCD merged, marked a new page in Europe’s political history, and reinforced the EPP’s position as the leading force in the European Parliament. With historical distance, one can say that the EPP understood the signs of the time and was ready. This is why it took on the main responsibility for the European project.
I must share one more memory in this regard. I had the chance to discuss the future of Europe with Helmut Kohl three times. On each occasion, he shared with me his attitude: ‘When I had a European idea, I discussed it first with the smallest member state. If it was acceptable for Luxembourg, it could work for the others as well.’ I wish other top leaders would follow his method.
A community of values
The main reasons for the EPP’s success were its understanding of the historic moment and its vision for the future of Europe. Christian Democrats were the main contributors to the new Europe that emerged after the Second World War, and they played the leading role in reuniting Europe after the fall of Communism.
Looking back at those times, one can say that the EPP was ready, not only in practice but also from a moral point of view. I am proud of belonging to the same political family as Robert Schuman, Konrad Adenauer, Alcide De Gasperi and other Christian Democrats who shared the basic belief that a new, democratic Europe should be based on the Christian Democratic concept of man, with respect for the dignity of each person and each nation.
We must remember that an enlarged EU does not necessarily mean a truly united Europe. But only a truly united EU will be able to achieve ‘more Europe’. Being united means to share the same fundamental values and principles. We have to reconsider what it means today to respect human dignity and to work together. And one cannot have more Europe with less soul, as Schuman and Delors taught us.
The EU began as a community which shared the same basic values and principles. A union can survive only as a community. Community is also the answer now, when we are facing global polarisation and wars in our vicinity.
Conclusion
In the situation we face now, we cannot afford a weak Europe. We have to agree again on the diagnosis and therapy. We must not forget that the European Community began as a peace project. We must also be aware that the project of reuniting Europe has not yet been accomplished in South-Eastern Europe. In the Western Balkans there are still sources of possible conflict that may develop. The European prospects of the Western Balkan countries cannot be strong without a strong political will, clear strategy and timetable in Brussels. The same goes for Ukraine, Georgia, Moldova and the other countries with European ambitions.
The idea of community should also be the leading concept with regard to global relations and leadership. The question ‘What should be first?’, in terms of priorities, should be more important than ‘Who is the first?’ on the global scene. We need only one Europe, without new divisions.
We can build a strong Europe only with a strong EPP—strong not just in numbers, but with a clear and strong identity. I know the EPP can provide added value to the quality of European togetherness.
To be strong means to be ready.
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Alojz Peterle
became the first democratically elected prime minister of Slovenia in 1990. He served as deputy prime minister and minister of foreign affairs in 1993–4. A cofounder of the Slovenian SKD, he was vice-president of the EUCD from 1996 to 1999 and of the EPP from 2006 to 2009. He was also a Member of the Slovenian Parliament (1990–2004), an MEP (2004–19) and a member of the presidium of the European Convention on the Future of Europe.