Oh, the excitement and the suspense, the breathless reporting and the angry tweets. Osaka, Brussels, dinner, breakfast. Jet lag. Is anyone really surprised that - despite hours of back-biting, horse-trading and secret deals - exhausted leaders needed several meetings before agreeing on an allocation of the European Union's top jobs?

Of course not. It's the way Europe chooses its political leaders. Has always done and will continue to do so until we say: Stop, enough is enough. Europe can't aim to connect with citizens and be a more forceful global actor until it puts its house in order. Yes, it's difficult to get the political balance right. There's geography and gender to consider. Egos to manage. Alliances to respect. And lost in the arcane process is quality and qualifications, merit and substance.

Still, the women and men selected at the European Union summit which finally ended on July 2 appear to have the leadership skills needed to steer Europe in the challenging years ahead.

Christine Lagarde will be the new head of the European Central Bank. Charles Michel, the outgoing Belgian prime minister, takes over the reins at the EU Council. And Ursula von der Leyen, former German defence minister, is the European Commission president, while Spanish Foreign Minister Josep Borrell Fontelles has been appointed as the EU high representative for foreign and security policy.

The EU's new team faces a difficult balancing act as it tries to get its internal dynamics right while also seeking to command attention and respect on a very crowded global stage.

The women and men taking charge of the different EU institutions must set their global sights high. They must be ready to talk and walk very quickly on tackling major global challenges. And they should do so with confidence, vision and determination.

It won't be easy. The world today is not just more complex, contested and competitive than ever before, it is going through a period of massive change and upheaval. A new era is unfolding in myriad messy ways.

The dominance of the United States and Europe is well and truly over. And the global center of gravity is shifting away from the West.

Just outside Europe's borders, there are countries still entangled in futile but endless wars, while others face grinding poverty, and hunger. Migration and climate change confront all nations.

Liberalism is under threat. Racism is being mainstreamed, technological change and innovation challenge both the rich and the poor - albeit in different ways - and there's a push back against gender equality. Add to this the ongoing discrimination faced by minorities and the threat posed to the press and civil society. Zero-sum games prevail. And in a world dominated by "strong men" it's always "us versus them".

The list is long and painful to read. With the US no longer the shining city on the hill, Europeans cannot look away and seek isolation. They must engage, connect and persist. Turning inward is not an option.

Europe's voice still counts. So, here are some suggestions on how to make Europe matter even more in the months ahead:

First, don't give up on Iran or the Middle East. Yes, this does mean more areas of discord with the United States administration. But so be it. Europe must salvage the nuclear deal with Iran while broadening the conversation to include regional issues. And Jared Kushner's so-called "deal of the century" Middle East Development Project? Forget it. The EU was right not to attend the Bahrain workshop and to stick to its long-standing commitment to a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine.

Second, build on the impressive recent EU trade deal with the South American Mercosur bloc and with Vietnam by embarking on a similar process of serious consultation and exploration of a trade pact with the 10-member Association of South East Asian Nations while also seeking synergies with the African Union's even more visionary Continental Free Trade Agreement. Why not consider joining the revamped Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership that brings together 11 major economies?

Third, open discussions with all interested economies on negotiating a multilateral agreement which covers internationally-agreed standards and norms on transparency, sustainability and fiscal elements of connectivity projects. The world needs more infrastructure connectivity - not just China's Belt and Road Initiative. The EU should take seriously Chinese President Xi Jinping's commitment to "multilateralizing" the Belt and Road Initiative and work with all countries with similar projects - Japan, ASEAN, India - to draw up binding quality and procurement standards for infrastructure connectivity.

Fourth, replace slapdash and ad hoc internet and digital governance initiatives with a coherent international effort to set global standards. The Osaka Track to formulate rules on digital governance adopted by 24 signatories, including China, at the G20 Leaders' Summit is one way forward. As a first step, it commits countries to international rule-making on trade-related aspects of e-commerce at the World Trade Organization. India and some others are not participating - but should be persuaded to do so. Other issues to address concern privacy and data security.

Fifth, make Agenda 2030 the driving force for EU ambitions and policies both at home and abroad. Adopted by the United Nations in 2015, the 17 sustainable development goals are often shrugged off as little more than a sideshow to the real task of tackling climate change, women's empowerment and combating poverty. In fact, it's quite the opposite. If implemented and enforced, the goals will go a long way to reversing environmental degradation, ensuring fair taxation and tackling ocean pollution.

And last, but not least, ignore the far right naysayers and adopt a humane and respectful policy for managing migration which meets Europe's need for skills, labor and talent. Italy's action against Carola Rackete, the captain of the Sea-Watch 3 rescue ship, who sailed into the port of Lampedusa with 42 asylum seekers on board despite a ban from Rome, is just one example of an EU policy gone terribly wrong. It clearly erodes the EU's moral credibility.

There is more of course. Europe alone can't ensure peace in our world. But new EU leaders can play their part in trying to make a start.

The author is the director for Europe& Geopolitics at Friends of Europe, based in Brussels.

The author contributed this article to China Watch exclusively. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of China Watch.

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