40 Years of Schengen – We Need More of It!
For 40 years, Europeans have enjoyed freedom of movement thanks to the Schengen Agreement. Yet the idea of a united continent is currently facing tough times. Now more than ever, we need more Europe – not less.
As a CEO, I have to travel a lot. Meeting employees here, visiting customers there, speaking at conferences elsewhere – even in the age of online meetings, in-person contact remains essential for me.
I especially enjoy traveling within Europe, for a very practical reason: It’s usually wonderfully uncomplicated. No long border checks, no tedious customs procedures – this has been, at least until now, a privilege for over 400 million people and countless businesses in 29 European countries.
We owe this to a bold step taken 40 years ago: the first of several Schengen Agreements, signed on June 14, 1985, in the small Moselle town with the same name by politicians from Belgium, Germany, France, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands. It came into force ten years later.
Free movement of people, goods, and services has since become a cornerstone of a united Europe, further developed through the European Single Market and the Eurozone.
Undermining the Idea of Unity
This vision is currently under serious threat – from within, through national self-interest, erosion of the rule of law, and restrictions on freedom of speech and the press; and from outside, through provocations, propaganda, and migration pressure. Reintroduced and repeatedly extended border controls – originally intended as temporary and a last resort – now risk undermining the Schengen idea. They could, in fact, destabilize the entire European integration project, with unforeseeable consequences for member states, as well as millions of people and many countries beyond.
What we need now is not less, but more Europe. An open-minded, diverse, and tolerant continent – especially in terms of a strong economy and industry. While other parts of the world are erecting tariff walls or dumping goods at rock-bottom prices, we must expand intra-European trade.
The Single Market is a clear success: it has increased the EU’s GDP by at least three to four percent and created 3.6 million jobs. According to the European Commission, completing the Single Market could even double these gains.
Strengthening the Single Market
It’s encouraging that the Commission has now presented a strategy to simplify, harmonize, and strengthen the market. The focus on the “terrible ten” – the most serious obstacles to the free movement of goods and services that must be urgently removed – signals a new pragmatism and sense of urgency in Brussels.
This is also evident in how “my” industry, the European chemical sector, is being addressed. It ranks second globally and, with over 650 billion euros in revenue, around 10 billion euros in research investment, and 1.2 million employees, is a key driver of value creation and prosperity.
However, the sector has long been losing international competitiveness – ironically, due in large part to everyday realities within the European framework. Excessive regulation with sometimes contradictory rules, lengthy procedures, and excessively high energy costs are holding us back. Now, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen plans to present a special action plan for the chemical industry with structural reforms – this gives reason for hope.
But we must not place all the blame on Brussels. The Single Market, the Schengen Agreement, the entire EU – they are built on solidarity and can only thrive on a sense of community. We must not let that spirit fade further. Every member state, every citizen, and the business community must contribute – to complete our common European house: smart, resilient, and open.