In the sense they extend rules across Europe, sure. In being a colonial empire that pretty single-directionally funnels wealth to itself and it’s Emperor, no.
The historical comparison I’m making here would be Justinian I vs. Emperor Wu. One put the recently dead empire back together, setting the stage for it to unify over and over again, the other tried but failed.
The EU is arguably kinda like the Rome. The Brussels effect means following EU rules to keep trading with them or lose access to the market.
In the sense they extend rules across Europe, sure. In being a colonial empire that pretty single-directionally funnels wealth to itself and it’s Emperor, no.
The historical comparison I’m making here would be Justinian I vs. Emperor Wu. One put the recently dead empire back together, setting the stage for it to unify over and over again, the other tried but failed.