In his closing speech of the Conference on the Future of Europe in Strasbourg, which coincided with Europe Day, the President of France, Emmanuel Macron, presented his vision for the establishment of a European Political Community (EPC), with the conviction that "The EU cannot remain in the short term the only platform to structure the European continent". 
Such a political community, according to Macron, would allow "European democratic states that believe in our core values a new space for political cooperation on issues of security, energy, transport, investment in infrastructure and the free movement of people, especially young people". Despite skepticism and uncertainty about the intentions of this initiative, which in itself is not new, the EPC was formally approved by the European Council in June. 
A similar proposal was made by the former French President, Francois Mitterrand, on the eve of the fall of the Berlin Wall. In addition to the creation of the European Confederation, Mitterrand also proposed the creation of a central bank for all European states. Back then, the French justified their proposals as an attempt to avoid a massive and too rapid enlargement of the EU with countries newly emerging from the communist yoke, which would have killed the still-fragile euro project; and beyond that, killing the hope for a political Europe. 
The creation of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, EBRD, aimed to finance the needs of the countries of Central and Eastern Europe. While the European Confederation was seen as an opportunity for all these states to participate in the political and military construction of a peaceful and united Europe. Mitterrand's idea was not accepted, partly due to the opposition of the US, which did not want new "partitions" on the continent. 
The wars in the former Yugoslavia found Europe unprepared in terms of geopolitics. The attitude of the Foreign Minister of Luxembourg, Jacques Poos, on the eve of the outbreak of the wars in the former Yugoslavia, in June 1991, will remain indelible in the memory of diplomacy and geopolitics. 
He called on the European countries to take measures to respond to a crisis that threatened European stability, with the conviction that "this is the hour of Europe and not the hour of the Americans". However, American commitment was decisive in stopping the bloody conflicts in the middle of Europe. The latter, being focused on the construction of the Euro policy, proved unable to finalize the reunification project that began with the fall of the Berlin Wall, as a project in antithesis to wars and bloody conflicts. Even in the past, similar ideas were thrown, which aimed to finalize the political project of Europe. 
Thus, in January 2003, the former President of the European Commission, Romano Prodi, proposed the creation of a "ring of friends" around the EU. This proposal, which aimed at the membership of the Western Balkan states in the EU, within a decade, and at the same time the creation of a "ring of friends" around an enlarged EU, was submitted a year before the major enlargement of the EU of 2004, with the states of Central and Eastern Europe. Some of these proposals were embodied in the Thessaloniki Agenda of 2003, where the EU committed itself to the membership of the Western Balkan states in the EU. 

WHAT THE EPC IS NOT? 
In the conditions where the EPC is an initiative under development, it is important to understand what this initiative is not and what it does not aim for. The main concern about whether the EPC is a consolation prize for states that will not be able to join the EU or a platform towards full membership was answered by the heads of the EU member states themselves. According to them, the European Political Community is not an alternative to the EU membership process, nor does it aim to replace the enlargement process. 
This is seen in the format of the European Political Community with states that do not aim for EU membership, as well as in the tools available for this initiative, which are different from those of the EU enlargement process. The European Political Community cannot even replace the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), as the institutional embodiment of the continental security order, which is now in a very difficult moment, because its guiding principles, which are related to non-intervention, the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the participating states seem like a thing of the past, due to Russian imperialism against Ukraine. Also, without Russia and Belarus, the European Political Community cannot serve as a mechanism or platform for ending the war in Europe. 

PROFILE AND MESSAGES OF THE EUROPEAN POLITICAL COMMUNITY 
Thus, excluding the above options, the profile of the European Political Community was gradually sketched, in support of dialogue and political cooperation to strengthen European security and prosperity. When we talk about this initiative, the first tangible thing is that it became a reality during the Prague Summit on October 6-7, within a short time of its initial presentation. 
Although it was agreed that future meetings will be held in Moldova, Spain, and the United Kingdom, ensuring the periodicity of the initiative, there is still no founding document or general framework for the functioning of the European Political Community. With Europe experiencing security twilight as a result of Russia's aggression against Ukraine, the gathering together of forty-four heads of state with a vast geography from Armenia to Iceland was a meaningful message for the Kremlin. 
Of course, the message would have been stronger if the summit had been accompanied by agreed conclusions. But this was impossible, perhaps because of this wide format. President Macron himself considered the EPC as an opportunity for European states to build a "strategic intimacy" (intimité stratégique). However, in the conditions of the escalation of the war in Ukraine, the question that requires an answer is what this strategic intimacy will aim at the doorstep of Russia, even more so when the latter has its military forces deployed in Ukraine, Moldova, and Georgia. 
It should be noted that the EPC achieved a modest return of the United Kingdom to a continental forum. Even the British Prime Minister herself, during her speech, took care to point out the inalienable role of the United Kingdom in the geopolitical discussions on the continent even after leaving the EU. 
In addition, it was announced that a British-French summit would be held in 2023. The European Political Community was not a meeting of democratic states that share and develop the same concept of freedom, democracy, and the rule of law. The Prague summit brought together states at enmity with each other, such as Armenia and Azerbaijan; states that do not know each other like Kosovo and Serbia; or countries that have well-known disputes like Greece and Turkey. In other words, realpolitik and "union diplomacy" were given priority over the cultivation of values and respect for European principles. In this context, the mediation of the meeting between Armenia and Azerbaijan, during the summit proceedings, should be read, which marked some progress between the two states of the South Caucasus. 
Or even the renewal of the German-French engagement in the dialogue process between Kosovo and Serbia. This multi-flag format inevitably somewhat undermines the need for a unifying message vis-à-vis Russia. And most importantly it calls into question the sustainability and efficiency of the initiative. On the other hand, if the European Political Community were to align the entire continent to the lowest common denominator, the democratic one, there would be fewer participants and a more limited geography, which does not match the goal of the initiative. Both the EU and the United Kingdom or other states that do not aspire to join the EU were careful to emphasize the fact that the European Political Community is not a construct or product of the EU. 
It should not be alienated in a body for making imposing decisions, but for dialogue and the search for a degree of alignment between the participating states. 
We must be realistic that the participants in the European Political Community have different positions on certain issues. But it is important to work on finding meeting points, which can be achieved through exploring more collaborative practices, thus reducing strategic dependencies and engaging in cross-linking projects. The chances are small that such a forum in a short time will forge the strategic intimacy intended by President Macron. 
Accordingly, the resumption of a security discussion with Russia is unthinkable under the current circumstances. This exercise will take its time under circumstances quite different from today. However, the Political Community can operate on a pragmatist approach, where participants can do things together without being or becoming the same. By making it clear that those who violate the basic norms of international law cannot be allowed to participate, the European Political Community should not be seen as a community of values, but of fate: A large group of countries that have to deal with similar challenges in a common space and time. If the European Political Community returns in the future to a space in which European politics is developed, it will depend on the will of the participating states. To advance in the competitive world of great powers, where traditional mechanisms of international order have weakened and political divisions abound, Europe needs its own continental forum. 

*Former Foreign Minister of Albania. Excerpts of an analysis published by the "Friedrich Ebert" Foundation