quote [ But whatever it is, some are more committed to it than ever.

It’s a local issue gone international——and one that could threaten the cohesion of the European Union. If Catalonia breaks away, would Italy’s wealthy northern Lombardy and Veneto regions aim to follow? Or the Flemish parts of Belgium? Or the French island of Corsica, where a nationalist coalition just won 45 percent of the vote in the first round of regional elections? And yet—the way some supporters of Catalan independence see it—the European Union is a product of the post-nation state world, so why not let Europe embrace regions, not just central governments? ]