Translated from the German original. Read the original in German.
I have been thinking about why Europe reacts so sluggishly while the geopolitical world is changing ever faster.
Is it really only down to bureaucracy and the EU’s complicated procedures – or also to the different stages of development of the European states themselves?
Then a thought occurred to me:
What if we applied Plato’s old model of the stages of government (The Republic – Politeia) to today’s EU?
I put the question to three AI systems – ChatGPT, Perplexity and Claude – and asked them to place Europe’s states in Plato’s stages.
The result is remarkable – and, to my mind, fairly plausible.
Plato’s six stages (simplified):
1️⃣ Aristocracy – rule of the wise / an order guided by reason
2️⃣ Timocracy – rule of the honour-loving / honour and strength decide
3️⃣ Oligarchy – rule of the rich / wealth and power are what count
4️⃣ Democracy – rule of the many / freedom and equality
5️⃣ Excessive democracy – freedom without measure, loss of authority
6️⃣ Tyranny – rule of one / oppression and arbitrary power
So where do European states stand today?
Aristocracy: Finland, Denmark, Sweden, the Netherlands – rational, stable, focused on substance.
Timocracy: Poland (until 2023), Greece – strongly national in outlook.
Oligarchy: Cyprus, Luxembourg, Ireland – economic power dominates.
Democracy: Austria, Portugal, Spain – stable, balanced systems.
Excessive democracy: Italy, France, Germany – growing polarisation, mistrust, a glut of rules.
Rise of the tyrant: Hungary, partly Slovakia – populist tendencies, concentration of power.
Europe therefore displays every stage at once – from the rational north to authoritarian currents in the east. That is what makes joint decisions so difficult.
What all three AIs recommend in unison:
Europe needs less unanimity and more majority voting,
flexible alliances (“coalitions of the willing”), strategic autonomy in defence, energy and technology, and more education, moderation and responsibility in political leadership.
Conclusion:
Europe is a Platonic microcosm – a continent of differing political states of mind.
If we want to act faster, more flexibly and more united, we must learn to put reason before emotion, overcome blockades and see leadership as a responsibility, not a privilege.
Less blockade, more delivery – more Europe in action, not just in words. 🇪🇺
