“European Union today is a genuine superpower and will likely remain one for decades to come.
By most objective measures, it either rivals or surpasses the United States and China in its ability to project a full spectrum of global military, economic, and soft power.
European Union consistently deploys military troops within and beyond its immediate neighborhood. It manipulates economic power with a skill and success unmatched by any other country or region. And its ability to employ “soft power” to persuade other countries to change their behavior is unique.
If a superpower is a political entity that can consistently project military, economic, and soft power transcontinentally with a reasonable chance of success, European Union surely qualifies.
Its power, moreover, is likely to remain entrenched for at least another generation, regardless of the outcome of current European crises.
In sum, European Union is the “invisible superpower” in contemporary world politics.
Here’s why”:
http://foreignpolicy.com/2017/04/13/europe-is-still-a-superpower/
