Ursula von der Leyen’s big State of the Union speech on Wednesday covered a lot of ground, from a plan to sanction Israeli ministers and defense of her U.S. trade deal to support for regulations on Big Tech and calls for all Europeans to have access to electric vehicles.
In a testy, at times hostile, European Parliament, the Commission president rarely appeared flustered. But what was beneath the rhetoric and the carefully-crafted statements?
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What she said: “Europe is in a fight.”
What she meant: We used to stand beside — well, behind — the U.S. when taking on bullies Russia and China. But the U.S. is now one of the bullies, so let’s hit the gym.
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What she said: “Battlelines for a new world order based on power are being drawn right now. So, yes, Europe must fight. For its place in a world in which many major powers are either ambivalent or openly hostile to Europe.”
What she meant: The U.S. alternates between being ambivalent and openly hostile to Europe. Sometimes within minutes of each other. I prefer the former.
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What she said: “We are also working to find a way to grant a bonus to those who support Ukraine or buy Ukrainian equipment. This is emergency financial assistance responding to an urgent need. Last week, I saw this for myself when I visited frontline member states. They know best the threat Russia poses.”
What she meant: I was on a plane that may or may not have lost access to GPS signals, and if that did happen, it may or may not have been the work of Russia. The plane may or may or may not have been delayed for a significant amount of time, and the pilots may or may not have had to use paper maps to land. So I feel your pain.
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What she said: “There is no doubt: Europe’s eastern flank keeps all of Europe safe. From the Baltic Sea to the Black Sea. This is why we must invest in supporting it through an Eastern Flank Watch.”
What she meant: With effectively no military capabilities, we are instead sending some binoculars to Estonia.
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What she said: “There is no time to waste. At the next European Council, we will therefore present a clear roadmap. For getting new common defense projects off the ground. For setting clear goals for 2030. And for creating a European Defense Semester. 2030 is tomorrow.”
What she meant: Chances of the European Council agreeing on anything defense-related by 2030 are next to non-existent.
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What she said: “What is happening in Gaza has shaken the conscience of the world. People killed while begging for food. Mothers holding lifeless babies. These images are simply catastrophic. So I want to start with a very clear message: Man-made famine can never be a weapon of war. For the sake of the children, for the sake of humanity — this must stop.”
What she meant: What is happening in Gaza is truly horrific, but I’m going to wait a while before mentioning Israel.
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What she said: “We will put our bilateral support to Israel on hold.”
What she meant: We can’t do anything to stop EU members sending whatever they like to Israel.
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What she said: “We are tackling the key bottlenecks identified by the Draghi report — from energy to capital, investment to simplification.”
What she meant: The Draghi report came out a year ago, and we’ve done almost nothing he asked for. But he keeps reminding people, so we can’t just forget it ever happened.
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What she said: “The omnibuses we have put on the table so far will make a real difference. Less paperwork, less overlaps, less complex rules. Our proposals will cut €8 billion a year of bureaucratic costs for European companies. A digital euro, for example, will make it easier for companies and consumers alike. And further omnibuses are on their way – for example, on military mobility or digital.”
What she meant: You wait ages for an omnibus and then several turn up at once.
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What she said: “The IMF estimates that the internal barriers within the single market are equivalent to a 45 percent tariff on goods and a 110 percent tariff on services.”
What she meant: So my deal with Donald Trump wasn’t that bad, was it.
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What she said: “Energy bills are still a real source of anxiety for millions of Europeans. And costs are still structurally high for industry. We know what drove prices up ― dependency on Russian fossil fuels. So it is time to get rid of dirty Russian fossil fuels.”
What she meant: Message to Hungary: stop using Russian gas. Thank goodness I agreed to use massive amounts of American LNG instead.
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What she said: “A home is not just four walls and a roof. It is safety, warmth, a place for family and friends.”
What she meant: I live in my office.
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What she said: “I believe Europe should have its own e-car. ‘E’ for environmental — clean, efficient and lightweight. ‘E’ for economical — affordable for people. ‘E’ for European — built here in Europe, with European supply chains.”
What she meant: E for extremely scared of the German car lobby.
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What she said: “In Europe, we have access to high-quality food that our outstanding farmers and fishers produce at affordable prices.
What she meant: Please don’t keep coming to Brussels and dumping liquid manure everywhere.
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What she said: “We have simplified the CAP [Common Agricultural Policy] — less paperwork and more trust. We have ringfenced income support in the next MFF [Multiannual Financial Framework]. And made sure that funding can be topped up by national and regional envelopes.”
What she meant: We have every intention of passing the buck on farmers to the national capitals.
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What she said: “I have heard many things about the deal we agreed on over the summer. I understand the initial reactions. So allow me to be as clear as I can. Our trading relationship with the U.S. is our most important. We export over €500 billion worth of goods to the U.S. every year. Millions of jobs depend on it. As president of the Commission, I will never gamble with people’s jobs or livelihoods. This is why we did a deal to keep market access for our industries.”
What she meant: It was a terrible deal, but if you annoy Donald Trump, he says mean things about you on Truth Social.
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What she said: “Think of the repercussions of a full-fledged trade war with the U.S. Picture the chaos.”
What she meant: I know it’s already chaos.
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What she said: “We are on the brink – or even at the start — of another global health crisis. As a medical doctor by training, I am appalled by the disinformation that threatens global
progress on everything from measles to polio. And this is why today I can announce that the EU will head a new Global Health Resilience Initiative.”
What she meant: I’m more than happy to call Pfizer.
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What she said: “When independent media are dismantled or neutralized, our ability to monitor corruption and preserve democracy is severely weakened. This is why the first step in an autocrat’s playbook is always to capture independent media. So we need to do more to protect our media and independent press.”
What she meant: Autocrat’s playbook is bad, but Brussels Playbook is great.
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What she said: “I strongly believe that parents, not algorithms, should be raising our children.”
What she meant: And Netflix helps.
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What she said: “Climate change is making each summer hotter, harsher, and more dangerous. This is why we have to radically step up our efforts into climate resilience and adaptation, and nature-based solutions.”
What she meant: I purposely waited until near the end of my speech to mention climate, to annoy the Greens.
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What she said: I would like to tell you the story of a group of 20 Greek rangers. They are specialists in taming the fiercest of forest fires … As the flames swept closer to the village of Genestoso, they fought day and night to contain the inferno. And in the end — together — they tamed the fire, and the village was saved. It is such an honor to welcome one of these heroes today.”
What she meant: Try booing me when I’ve just introduced a handsome, brave firefighter!
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What she said: “I support the right of initiative of the European Parliament. And I believe that we need to move to a qualified majority in some areas, for example, in foreign policy. It is time to break free from the shackles of unanimity.”
What she meant: There are too many far-right people in the Parliament, so we can just ignore them.
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