Campaign Calculations Bring the EU to a Halt

Campaign season is fast approaching in France and Germany, Europe's biggest political and economic heavyweights. As political parties in both countries maneuver to secure victories in their respective general elections, set for 2017, consensus will become increasingly difficult to find on the Continent. Paris and Berlin will each present new proposals to knit the European Union closer together, but with Euroskepticism rising on both sides of the Rhine, agreements to that effect will be tough to achieve. Stalled cooperation between the Continent's largest players will do little to help Europe reverse its fragmentation and face its challenges -- especially if France and Germany's commitment to keeping the European Union united begins to fade....