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Building peace by preparing for war. The ancient Latin warning has passed through the millennia unscathed and resonated – never so dramatically relevant – yesterday, in the hall of Palazzo Corvaja where some of the most authoritative voices on international politics were gathered, as part of the Taobuk festival, which every year dedicates an important part of its multicultural debate to geopolitics.
Discussions on “Defense, competitiveness and innovation” were Manuel Valls, former French Prime Minister, Paolo Gentiloni, former Prime Minister and European Commissioner for the Economy, Angelino Alfano, president of the De Gasperi Foundation and former Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Federico Fubini, deputy editor of the Corriere della Sera, with the moderation of the journalist Paolo Valentino.
The meeting, opened by greetings from the mayor of Taormina Cateno De Luca, explored the political, economic and institutional conditions through which Europe can rebuild the trust necessary to act as a unitary and cohesive entity.
It is indeed difficult to think about trust while discussing armaments and war strategies, yet it was Valls who closed the circle, which he himself had opened. «Europe must prepare for war – he warned – but a rigorous evaluation of European military strategy is lacking. We must be strong, independent and ready. To war, or to dissuasion.”
Understanding, awareness and determination: for Alfano these are the three actions to be taken, to prevent Europe from remaining outside of an international order that has changed and in which the Old Continent risks being not those who move the pawns, but the “at stake”. “We have the right to play all our cards, to be autonomous and not against NATO: those who have political responsibility cannot fail to see what could come.”
Gentiloni began by recalling the 2017 G7 which in Taormina welcomed a different Trump from the one who today believes that the European Union is a “problem”, when instead “we Europeans are responsible for freedom in the world”. For Gentiloni, the nuclear horizon is also worrying: «Germany – he recalled – will spend 190 billion in 2029 compared to 40 before. This is an unacceptable imbalance.” “On defense – he continued – awareness and funding are needed: and it is not true that infinite expenditure is needed.” He then concluded by urging civic participation, also in view of the next European elections.
Ample space for scenarios regarding technology and above all strategies linked to artificial intelligence and, in particular, as Fubini analytically highlighted, the dominant position of the USA in the governance of big tech.
In conclusion, Valls’ warning: catch up on the technological and strategic gap to regain democratic trust, explaining to the communities the importance of defence. “Defense and technology – he warned – because mistrust is fueled by inefficiency.”