“Turn skepticism into action. The European Union is our best instrument for peace, security, independence. It is a democracy and it is in your hands, the European citizens, to decide what the priorities are.”
“For years, the European Union has believed that having a market of 450 million consumers would give it power in world politics and international trade. But this year has shown that this idea was simply an illusion that has now disappeared.” With these words, Mario Draghi opened his speech at the annual meeting of the “Comunione e Liberazione”, where he was greeted with much applause. He made it clear that the way Europe has functioned so far is no longer enough, and that we must face the new reality. The former president of the European Central Bank and former Italian prime minister spoke openly and analyzed developments in the world without embellishment.
“We had to accept tariffs from the US, our biggest ally and trading partner. They also pushed us to increase military spending, perhaps necessary, but not in a way that suits Europe’s interests. Even though the EU has provided more financial aid to Ukraine and has the greatest interest in a just peace, it has not played a significant role in the peace negotiations.” Draghi added that Europe has stood by as a spectator, even when major events have occurred, such as the bombing of nuclear facilities in Iran or the war in Gaza. “These events have shattered any illusion that economic power is enough to have geopolitical influence,” he said, according to Corriere Della Sera. But he is not against the European Union. On the contrary, he stressed: “We cannot claim that we would be better off without the EU.”
Draghi said that Europe must change and adapt to new challenges. He is clear about the path to follow. “Our political organization must adapt to the times when the challenges are existential. Returning to national sovereignty means becoming more vulnerable to great powers.” To face the challenges, according to him, the EU must move from being a spectator to a protagonist, reforming its political structure to be more effective in achieving strategic and economic objectives. In economic terms, Draghi returned attention to internal barriers: “If we were to reduce them to the level of those in the US, productivity in the EU would be 7% higher after seven years. Currently, we have barriers that are equivalent to a tariff of 64% for machinery and 95% for metals.”
“No country can develop critical technologies alone,” Draghi said, suggesting that the solution is joint European debt, as in the case of the pandemic. “Only jointly financed projects can guarantee capacities for defense, energy and transformative technologies.” Finally, Draghi called on current leaders: “Turn skepticism into action. The European Union is our best instrument for peace, security, independence. It is a democracy and it is in your hands, the European citizens, to decide what the priorities are.” His speech was a call for awareness, reform and determination, in a world that, as he put it: “does not look at us with sympathy and does not wait for our slow pace to impose its power.”