Forget the “cordon sanitaire” against the far right. Today, European neoliberalism is defended by a cordon into which such forces have already been integrated. The European Union’s future is being built well before citizens actually cast their votes on the first weekend of June: the paradigm shift is here already.

Until the 2019 European Parliament election, it still made sense to talk about a barrier against the far right. Now it is completely broken. One of the main reasons why the so-called center right has come to terms with far-right leaders such as Giorgia Meloni is their common pro-business purpose.

Amidst the campaign for June’s election, Brussels’s attitude toward investing public money in the defense industry, and European leaders’ push for a “war economy,” don’t just show that they prioritize the profits of a few. The building of a “wartime” narrative and the call for unity also serve to preempt criticism and help pave the way for forthcoming decisions and appointments in the EU institutions.