I think it has a lot to do with the American monopoly in the global cultural discourse and how they reduced Europe to cities like London, Paris, Venice, Barcelona, Rome or Berlin, and everything outside this is a big abstract space they don't really care about because they can't monetize it on Netflix. That's why American tourists get surprised when they find out Emily in Paris isn't an accurate description of France. Or in my experience as a city guide, you get American students who think Europe is a country. In order for Europe to fully assert its identity and be more distinguished when compared to the US, there should be no back seatsd when it comes to culture and shared values. You're absolutely right. My country was always on the fringes of kingdoms it belonged to, and it shows in its image. A mix of all kinds of stuff. In that sense, maybe that's the perfect of what Europe should be. Your country and similar ones will have a rightful seat at the table only when we stop treating the continent as the EU and the rest, because there's more to this continent than just the Schengen zone.