The stepping down of the UK’s ambassador to the EU, Sir Ivan Rogers continues a ‘natural’ process of replacement of Eurocentrics by Europscpetics, namely ‘remainers’ for ‘brexiters’. If in times of his appointment in 2013 the enthusiasm for common European future was an asset, as much as along the ‘StrongerIn’ campaign, in post-Brexit vote period it is a handicap. The times are changing, but not everyone is ready to change with times, some prefer to keep their personal integrity, speaking their ‘truth’ to those at power. Their choice should be respected.
But the ‘remainers’- poor losers they are – hurried to use to political ends the personal decision of ambassador, instead of accepting it as a part of a logical renewal. The type of a damaging for the common interest frenzy as both the UK and EU27 need pragmatic approach to diminish the emotional element and to implement the will of British people in a constructive way without lyrics and laments.
With a pinch of English humor in a Swiftian style, Sir Rogers hinted on an “exiting” year in Brussels ahead of his stuff, the experience he has no intention to share. However he kindly leaves some guidelines formally to his staff, but in reality to his bosses in London, the element many ‘remainers’ hurried to present as a ‘blow’ to the PM Theresa May. In vain. It is not ‘indecisive’ government, it is a EU project on the crossroads.
From the first lines Rogers admits the need to form a stable and devoted new team to follow the process from evocation of Article 50 through the negotiations to the end.
He also advises the replacement of his deputy to create an entirely new leadership for the diplomatic crew to engage fully in the future negotiations as one team.
Complaining about absence of clarity for Brexit negotiation objectives, the same time Rogers looks beyond his Brussels ‘situ’ to acknowledge the fact of changing political environment the UK is facing while departing from the project. Indeed, the UK government has no crystal ball to guess the outcome of the multiple elections taking place in EU27 in 2017. The national elections that might create a political environment from ‘favorable’ to ‘fair’ for Brexit negotiators. Why hurry to push the Article 50 button?..
Sir Rogers departs in a firm belive that the future of his country depends on skills of technocrats, negotiating every detail in trade agreements, but the history shows that the future is sculptured by multiple factors, among which the political will has a prior place. Europeans have witnessed a whirlwind of changes since the collapse of the fall of Berlin Wall, reminding that treaties can be abandoned not only by negotiations but also under clausual rebus sic stantibus, or because of a total change of the context.
The European institutions employees made us think that the threads for the future are in eurocrat’s hands. One of the evaporating myth of ‘la belle époque’ of the EU, that will never come back, because its beauty and glamour touched just a few, and made unhappy too many.
Anna Van Densky blog 