Draghi: "Possiamo cambiare la traiettoria del nostro continente: decidono gli Europei"
Mario Draghi: How Do We Change Our Continent's Trajectory? | Geopolitique |
For years, the European Union, with its 450 million consumers, believed that its economic weight came along with geopolitical power and influence in international trade relations.
This year will remain etched in our memories as the year when this illusion was shattered.
We had to resign ourselves to tariffs imposed by our largest trading partner and longtime ally, the United States.
This same ally pushed us to increase our military spending -- a decision we perhaps needed to make in any case -- but in ways and forms that probably do not reflect Europe's interests. Even though it has made the largest financial contribution to the war in Ukraine and has the greatest interest in a just peace, the European Union has, until now, only played a fairly marginal role in peace negotiations.
At the same time, China has been able to openly support Russia's war effort while also developing its industrial capacity in order to dump its excess production in Europe -- now that access to the American market is limited by the new barriers imposed by the United States' government.
European protest has had little effect. China has made it clear that it does not consider Europe an equal partner and has weaponized its control of rare earth minerals to make our dependence even more binding.
While Iranian nuclear sites were being bombed and the massacre in Gaza intensified, the European Union also remained a spectator.
These events quashed any illusion that economic power alone would be able to guarantee any form of geopolitical power.
It is therefore not surprising that skepticism towards Europe has never been higher. But it is important to ask ourselves where this skepticism really comes from.
'Democratic' governments exploit protests to increase attacks on citizens' right to resist | ECPR's Political Science Blog |
Transition and the Green Deal: the 3 weak points of Mario Draghi's speech | Materia Rinnovabile |
Because in his speech two days ago at the conference organised by the European Commission, "One year after the Draghi report", alongside some memorable phrases, there were also some statements on decarbonisation and the energy system that contradict some of his own recommendations.
For example, at the end of his speech, Draghi tells us that 'we must go beyond generic strategies and postponed deadlines. We need concrete dates and results, and to be held accountable for them. Deadlines should be ambitious enough to require real focus and collective effort. This has been the formula behind Europe's most successful projects: the single market and the euro. Both were achieved through clear stages, precise targets and constant political commitment.
Green Deal: results and discontinuities
Precisely. Given the evidence of the climate emergency, but also the geopolitical and economic challenges that have made European security and "sovereignty" even more urgent, this was the idea behind the Green Deal project, which was certainly imperfect, but based on "precise targets, collective effort", the promise of "constant political commitment" and a clear strategy: progressive reduction of dependence on fossil fuels and their producers, priority for renewables and a decentralised energy system, circular economy, energy efficiency to achieve net zero emissions by 2050.
And if one is acting in good faith, one cannot help but note that COVID and wars have made this strategy even more necessary, albeit certainly more difficult and costly. Moreover, the "results" are there. We are fairly in line with the emission reduction targets set for 2030, renewables are already the cheapest source of electricity production, our gas demand is falling by around 20% every year, Europe remains a leader in energy efficiency technologies, and in 2025 alone, 20 million tonnes of CO2 will be saved by the transition to electric mobility. As has been proven time and again, companies that invest in sustainability and "invent" new products are also the ones with the strongest presence in international markets and have positive prospects for production and job creation.
However, there is no doubt that for political and cultural reasons, due to the short-term economic interests of powerful sectors hostile to change and fierce competition for public and private resources, the situation today is far from straightforward, and the signs of discontinuity, hesitation, uncertainty and regression on the road to achieving the Green Deal are evident. Unfortunately, the effects that this inconsistency will have on the competitiveness and economic and social development of the Old Continent in the coming years are less evident. And certainly, Draghi's contribution to this debate is not always positive. Quite the contrary. I would like to give three examples from his speech two days ago.
Europe spending billions of euro's buying American and Israeli advanced weapons systems to protect against an illusoir enemy wherever the U.S. points to.
Israel and Germany sign 'historic' Arrow 3 missile defense deal | i24 News - 28 Sept. 2023 |
Germany Moves to Procure Israeli PULS Rocket Artillery Systems to Replace MARS II Units Sent to Ukraine
The PULS system, developed by Israeli defense contractor Elbit Systems, is designed to replace the outdated MARS II platforms and enhance the Bundeswehr's missile artillery capabilities. With a wide range of precision-guided rockets, including those capable of hitting targets up to 300 km away, the PULS system will significantly improve Germany's long-range fire support. This acquisition aligns with NATO's modernization efforts and will ensure that Germany remains a key player in European defense. The system will be built in collaboration with Krauss-Maffei Wegmann and integrated into Germany's military infrastructure.
Türkiye warns Cyprus' Israeli air defense system could destabilize island | Arab News |
Stop the F-35 from the USA: yes from Spain, pressure on the Swiss government. Italy looks at 25 new aircraft
- The Canadian premier has ordered a review of the purchase of a batch of 88 F-35
- India denies stop to plans to buy US arms and jets
- Pressing the Swiss government to stop F-35s from the US
- Italy intends to purchase 25 F-35s
