International Conference on the Milestones and Future of European Integration
On 12 June 2026, the Ludovika University of Public Service hosted a prestigious international academic event dedicated to the past, present, and future of European integration. The Faculty of Public Governance and International Studies, in cooperation with the University’s CORE Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence, organized a keynote lecture and expert roundtable discussion entitled “Milestones of European Integration before and after Lisbon: Successes and Limitations of an 80-year Crisis Management Community (1946–2026).”
The event focused on the historical evolution of European integration, its current challenges, and its future prospects.
The programme opened with brief welcoming remarks, followed by a keynote lecture delivered by the internationally renowned historian Professor Michael Gehler, Jean Monnet Chair at the University of Hildesheim. In his comprehensive presentation, Professor Gehler provided an in-depth overview of more than eight decades of European integration, highlighting the key political, economic, and security-related drivers that have shaped cooperation across the continent.
He examined the original motivations behind integration—including the imperative of securing peace, fostering economic development, and responding to the pressures of the Cold War—while also addressing structural limitations that have been present since the earliest stages of European cooperation.
Particular emphasis was placed on the European Union’s evolving role as a crisis-management actor. Professor Gehler noted that, historically, external (exogenous) crises have often acted as catalysts for deeper integration, whereas internal (endogenous) crises have tended to slow down or constrain the process. Recent complex crises—including the global financial crisis, migration challenges, and the COVID-19 pandemic—represent a new quality of pressure, exposing both the resilience and the limitations of EU decision-making mechanisms.
The second part of the programme featured a high-level roundtable discussion entitled “European Integration under Pressure: Historical Perspectives on Current Crises and Future Challenges.” The discussion brought together distinguished experts: Professor Michael Gehler; János Martonyi, former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Hungary and legal scholar; Professor Krisztina Arató, Jean Monnet Chair and Director of the Institute of Political Science at Eötvös Loránd University; and Boglárka Koller.
The panelists analysed current challenges facing European integration from a historical perspective. Key themes included the impacts of EU enlargement, the prospects and limits of differentiated integration, and the tensions between EU-level sovereignty and the interests of Member States.
The experts agreed that the European Union is currently experiencing a transitional period that simultaneously carries the potential for further integration and the risk of fragmentation. Special attention was also given to the evolving global role of the EU and the changing nature of transatlantic relations, both of which pose new challenges for the Union’s common foreign and security policy.
The event concluded with an interactive Q&A session, followed by an informal networking lunch, providing participants with additional opportunities for professional exchange and dialogue.
Overall, the conference offered a valuable platform for gaining a comprehensive understanding of the past, present, and future of European integration, while fostering meaningful discussion on the most pressing policy issues. Through events such as this, the Ludovika University of Public Service continues to contribute actively to international academic discourse and to support critical and forward-looking thinking on the European Union.