‘Da Joenk’ quits European politics, but not the fight for Europe: ‘We must defend ourselves together’

‘The ‘European Interest’ is the only way to safeguard our sovereignty in the world of tomorrow.’ Guy Verhofstadt leaves the European Parliament, yet ‘Da joenk’, as he was called as a young minister and prime minister, continues tirelessly with his European calvary.

‘Our two European heroes’: with these words, Tom Ongena, the party chairman of Open VLD, introduces the two liberal MEPs Guy Verhofstadt and Hilde Vautmans, at the party headquarters in the heart of Brussels. The bells of the nearby St. Catherine’s Church chime along. The now 71-year-old Verhofstadt is leaving the European Parliament, but not his voluntarist struggle for more Europe. Hilde Vautmans continues the Verhofstadt line as leader of the European liberal list in June under the title ‘European interest’.

Guy Verhofstadt is 71 years old, but ‘da joenk’, as he was called at the beginning of his political career, is still as voluntaristic and restless as in his younger days, and remains an avid cyclist. His broken midrib in a recent cycling accident on a tram track in Ghent is healing slowly, too slowly. And the former prime minister wants to get back on the bike soon.

Verhofstadt led a government three times. But his pro-European speeches and thunderous sermons as Liberal group leader in the European Parliament from 2009 to 2019 made him known throughout the Union. Leaving at the right time is often the message for big names in politics. But Verhofstadt added another five years. His much rarer and necessarily shorter interventions as a Member of the European Parliament instead of a faction leader were less prominent; some colleagues even experienced these interventions as ’embarrassing’.

Yet the European fire continues to burn strongly for Verhofstadt: ‘We are being attacked militarily by the Russians, economically by the Chinese and technologically by the United States. If we do not defend our European interests together, we will perish together.” The right of veto, which allows a country to block European decision-making, must be removed, he argues.

Verhofstadt led a series of recommendations for the future of Europe and wants the hemisphere to take a much tougher stance against member states, for example by rejecting the EU budget. ‘If there had only been European elections on June 9, I would have gone to voters under the banner ‘European Interest’, says Verhofstadt. ‘Not the Chinese interest, the Russian interest or the Flemish interest, but the European interest is the only way to safeguard our sovereignty in the world of tomorrow.’

Vautmans is wary of the extreme right: ‘Giorgia Meloni, Marine Le Pen, they all love Europe and no longer advocate an exit from the European Union. But when European laws and resolutions are voted on, MPs from those extreme right-wing parties oppose everything.’ She also refers to the influence, attempted hacking and interventions in the European Parliament paid for or instrumentalized by China or Russia: ‘Solutions are not going to come from those who are against Europe. We’re going to stand our ground.’

Verhofstadt has been thwarted several times in his European plans. During his period as Prime Minister, he wanted to become President of the European Commission, but then British Prime Minister Tony Blair vetoed the Flemish liberal’s overly pro-European ideas. He took revenge by becoming a Brexit negotiator on behalf of the European Parliament.

Today, Verhofstadt pushes last on the list of successors in the June 9 elections. But it is still too early for his memoirs. He wants to write about the future of politics, but for that he chose an American publisher.

The fight for a stronger and more resilient Europe still takes precedence. Since December last year, Verhofstadt has led the European Movement, with headquarters near the European Parliament. European defense is his new hunting ground and he is also working on a book for this.

Its great example is the European Defense Community, a treaty that was endorsed in 1952 by the six founding European members, France, the Federal Republic of Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg and Italy, and provided for the creation of a joint European army, ‘up to and including the uniforms’, Verhofstadt emphasizes. The relationships between the European Defense Union and NATO were also strictly established.

But this treaty was ultimately rejected by the French parliament and subsequently buried. What a difference this defense treaty would have made in the current circumstances, Verhofstadt notes. It will be one of the most important parts of his campaign that he will now lead as president of the European Movement.