"There is a pre-February 24 reality and a post-February 24 reality. The world has changed. We need to understand that the weight of the democratic global order now rests heavier than ever on Europe's shoulders. It is our whatever-it-takes moment. A moment that comes once every generation. A moment in which we must understand that Europe is also in the streets of Bucha, in the tunnels of Mariupol, in the cellars of Irpin, on the shores of the Isle of Snakes ".
Thus the president of the EU Parliament
Roberta Metsola
at the European conference The State of the Union.
"Putin's grave mistake was to think that our differences and the defense of fundamental rights were a sign of weakness. He was wrong. In democracies like ours, these are our strengths ... This is why we have accelerated towards the construction of a new union of security and defense ".
Thus the president of the EU Parliament Roberta Metsola at The State of the Union conference.
"We must untie ourselves from our dependencies on the Kremlin, we will put an end to oil and gas imports - she added -. We will continue with sanctions and aid to Ukraine, because we have to rebuild it".
LIVE ON MAY 6 FROM 8 TO 13.30
LIVE ON MAY 6 FROM 3 PM TO 6.30 PM
The State of the Union, the Festival of Europe in Florence
Seven days (from 5 to 12 May) of initiatives dedicated to the European Union, opened by the conference The State of The Union: it is the Festival of Europe, which returns to Florence after the two-year Covid break.
"This Festival will be an opportunity to restart in the name of Europe - said the mayor of Florence Dario Nardella - in a very difficult moment between the war and the breakthrough of the Next Generation Eu, and will ideally be dedicated to David Sassoli who gave so much for the Community institutions ".
The XII edition of The State of the Union, organized by the European University Institute of Fiesole and entitled 'A Europe for the next generations?'
it will welcome high-profile politicians, academics and private sector professionals from 40 countries.
The list of confirmed speakers for the plenary session of May 6, in Palazzo Vecchio, includes the High Representative of the EU Josep Borrell and the President of the European Parliament Roberta Metsola, and in video link the WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus , the European Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni, the Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio.
Among the events aimed at citizens, the Erasmus Space in Piazza della Repubblica, the concert on 10 May at the Verdi Theater for the 35th anniversary of the Erasmus program, and the 'Agorà Europa' space in Palazzo Vecchio to learn about the main ongoing projects financed from the EU to Florence.
Leaders and experts from around the world will address issues ranging from
multilateral governance
to
sustainability
and
resilience
,
democracy
and
the rule of law
, developments in attitudes towards
migration
, the future of
digitalisation
and how the
crisis
can
fuel change
.
Prominent speakers will discuss how the
Next Generation EU recovery plan
can deal with the damage inflicted by the pandemic.
Looking beyond Europe, the conference will feature panels on the future of transatlantic relations and Africa's emerging role on the global stage.
"The Russian aggression of Ukraine has made clear our energy dependence which is desperately linked to the past: we look to the future, the common solution for each of these challenges is the ecological transition".
This was stated by Kadri Simson, European Commissioner for Energy, speaking at a panel in the context of The State of the Union conference.
For Simson "energy prices will one day return to normal levels, the war in Ukraine will one day come to an end", but now "we must put aside reserves and strengthen our energy security. The green transition remains the most effective solution we have. to face short and long term challenges. Our goal is to relaunch the EU ".
