Just three years ago, the European Union basked in the glory of a Nobel Peace Prize and boasted of being a tight-knit community bound by “European values” of democracy, diversity and dignity.
By its own measure, the 28-nation club is now looking decidedly less European and even less a union these days as it grapples with the continent’s biggest refugee crisis since World War II.
Amid bitter recriminations among member states and scenes of police tear-gassing asylum seekers, some of the EU’s key initiatives are in jeopardy, including the removal of national borders and a collective approach to tackling problems.