At the World Economic Forum in Davos, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen declared the European Union stands in “full solidarity” with Denmark and Greenland, stressing their sovereignty and territorial integrity are non-negotiable. She announced the EU will work “hand in hand” with both to support the local economy and infrastructure, and to boost Arctic security alongside partners including the United States, Canada, Norway and the UK. The EU is preparing investments and defense spending increases to strengthen Arctic cooperation in a changing security environment.
00:00President Brande, dear Borger, thank you very much for the warm welcome.
00:05Your Majesties, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen.
00:09Indeed, it is now 56 years since the first meeting here in Davos.
00:17And the idea of the founder, Klaus Schwab, was to create a platform to discuss the issues and the ideas of the day.
00:26Of course, the world has transformed completely since 1971.
00:34But the original idea of Davos has remained, as we just have heard in the speeches.
00:40So I was delighted that you have gone back to your roots with this year's theme, a spirit of dialogue.
00:49Because this spirit is all the more important in a world that is more fractured and more fractious than ever.
00:591971 was the year of the so-called Nixon shock.
01:05And the decision to de-link the US dollar from gold.
01:11In an instant, the foundations of the Bretton Woods system and the entire global economic order set up after the war effectively collapsed.
01:23But it also had two major effects.
01:27It inadvertently created the conditions for what would become a truly global order.
01:35And it provided a sharp lesson for Europe and on the need to strengthen its economic and political power.
01:44It was a warning to reduce our dependencies, in this case, on a foreign currency.
01:53The world may be very different today, without any question.
01:57But I believe the lesson is very much the same.
02:02That geopolitical shocks can and must serve as an opportunity for Europe.
02:09And in my view, the seismic change we are going through today is an opportunity, in fact a necessity, to build a new form of European independence.
02:24And this need is neither new nor a reaction to recent events.
02:30It has been a structural imperative for far longer.
02:35So when I used this term, European independence, around a year ago, I was surprised at the skeptical reactions.
02:46But less than one year on, there is now a real consensus around this.
02:53The sheer speed and almost unthinkable scale of the change have driven this.
02:59But the underlying imperative is still the same.
03:05The good news is we acted immediately.
03:10Whether on energy or raw materials, defense or digital, we are moving fast.
03:18But the truth is also that we will only be able to capitalize on this opportunity if we recognize that this change is permanent.
03:31Of course, nostalgia is part of our human story, but nostalgia will not bring back the old order.
03:40And playing for time and hoping for things to revert soon will not fix the structural dependencies we have.
03:50So my point is, if this change is permanent, then Europe must change permanently too.
04:00It is time to seize this opportunity and build a new independent Europe.
04:08And ladies and gentlemen, this new Europe is already emerging.
04:15On Saturday, I was in Asuncion, in Paraguay, to sign the EU Mercosur Trade Agreement.
04:24It was a breakthrough after 25 years of negotiations.
04:30And with it, the European Union and Latin America have created the largest free trade zone in the world.
04:39A market worth over 20% of global GDP.
04:4531 countries with over 700 million consumers aligned with the Paris Agreement.
04:55So this agreement sends a powerful message to the world that we are choosing fair trade over tariffs,
05:04partnership over isolation, sustainability over exploitation,
05:13and that we are serious about de-risking our economies and diversifying our supply chains.
05:21And that will not stop in Latin America.
05:25Last year, we reached new agreements with Mexico, Indonesia and Switzerland, our host country.
05:32We are working on a new free trade agreement with Australia.
05:38We are also advancing with the Philippines, Thailand, Malaysia, the United Arab Emirates and more.
05:45And right after Davos, the next weekend, I will travel to India.
05:52There is still work to do, but we are on the cusp of a historic trade agreement.
06:01Indeed, some call it the mother of all deals.
06:05One that would create a market of 2 billion people, accounting for almost a quarter of global GDP.
06:15And crucially, that would provide a first-mover advantage for Europe with one of the world's fastest-growing and most dynamic continents.
06:27Europe wants to do business with the growth centers of today and the economic powerhouses of this century.
06:35From Latin America to the Indo-Pacific and far beyond, Europe will always choose the world.
06:43And the world is ready to choose Europe.
06:55And, ladies and gentlemen, this reality also reflects the fact that Europe has all the assets it needs to attract investment.
07:04The savings, the skills, the innovation with our AI factories and gigafactories and the applications that are necessary, AI first.
07:19What we need now is to mobilize collectively these assets to their full potential and to focus on the essential.
07:29So, focal point number one is to create a conducive and predictable regulatory environment.
07:38We live in an age where capital and data can cross Europe in a second.
07:44And business must be able to move just as freely.
07:48But, as things stand, too many companies have to look abroad to grow and scale up.
07:55Partly because they face the new set of rules every time they expand into a new member state.
08:03So, while on paper the market is of 450 million Europeans open to them, it is far more complicated in reality.
08:16And that acts as a handbrake on the growth and profit potential of companies.
08:22So, this is why we need a new approach.
08:25We will soon put forward our 28th regime.
08:29The ultimate aim is to create a new, truly European company structure.
08:37We call it EU Inc.
08:40With a single and simple set of rules that will apply seamlessly over our union.
08:48So that businesses can operate across member states much more easily.
08:52Our entrepreneurs, the innovative companies, will be able to register a company in any member state within 48 hours, fully online.
09:05They will enjoy the same capital regime all across the European Union.
09:11And, ultimately, we need a system where the companies can do business and raise financing seamlessly across Europe,
09:19just as easily as in uniform markets like the United States or China.
09:25If we get this right, and if we move fast enough, this will not only help EU companies grow,
09:34but it will attract investment from across the world.
09:39Which brings me to the second focus, investment and capital.
09:46We are now building the savings and investment union.
09:51We need a large-scale, deep and liquid capital market that attracts a wide range of investors.
10:01And this will allow businesses to find the funding they need, including equity, at lower costs here in Europe.
10:09We have made proposals on market integration and supervision to ensure our financial market is more integrated.
10:19This covers trading, post-trading and asset management, as well as driving innovation and making our supervisory framework more efficient.
10:30This will help ensure that capital flows where it is needed – to scale-ups, to SMEs, to innovation, to industry.
10:47And the third priority is to build an interconnected and affordable energy market – a true energy union.
10:55Energy is a choke point for both companies and households.
10:59And just look at the dispersion of prices across European electricity hubs.
11:04Europe needs an energy blueprint that pulls together all the parts.
11:12This is our affordable energy action plan.
11:16We are, for example, massively investing in our energy security and independence with interconnectors and grids.
11:25This is for homegrown energies that we are trying to promote as much as possible – the nuclear and the renewables – to bring down prices and cut dependencies,
11:37to put an end to price volatility, manipulation and supply shocks.
11:42But now we have to speed up this transition.
11:45Because homegrown, reliable, resilient and cheaper energy will drive our economic growth and deliver for Europeans and secure our independence.
11:59Ladies and gentlemen, whether on trade or business, capital or energy, Europe needs an urgency mindset.
12:12Our starting point is good.
12:15We are home to global champions in fields ranging from wind power to next-generation batteries,
12:21from aerospace to the industrial machines that are essential to build the chips and advanced weapons.
12:28Our companies are taking up AI at the same pace as their US peers.
12:34Europe is in the race for the key technologies of tomorrow.
12:40But as global competition gets ruthless, we must show real ambition, especially in those sectors vital for our independence.
12:53Take defence, for example.
12:55We have done more on defence in the last year than in decades before.
13:03We have started a surge in defence spending up to 800 billion euros till 2030.
13:12Member States are stepping up their investment at record level.
13:17And this has helped to triple the market value of European defence industry companies since January 2022.
13:26We now have three leading European defence tech start-ups that have reached unicorn valuation.
13:36They are working on AI-powered software and systems for battlefield intelligence.
13:41So they are also driving innovation and investment in Europe's defence tech industrial base.
13:53All of this would have been unthinkable even a few years ago.
14:00This now only shows how economy and national security are more linked than ever.
14:11But also what we can do when Europeans have the will to match the ambition.
14:19So ladies and gentlemen, this need for ambition is most important when it comes to the security of our continent.
14:31In just over a month, we will mark the fourth anniversary of Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine.
14:41Four years on, Russia shows no sign of abating, no sign of remorse, no sign of seeking peace.
14:53On the contrary, Russia is intensifying its attacks, killing civilians every day as we speak.
15:04Just last week, its bombing of Ukraine's energy infrastructure left millions facing darkness, cold and water shortages.
15:15This must end.
15:19We all want peace for Ukraine.
15:32We recognise President Trump's role in pushing the peace process forward.
15:38And we will work very closely with the United States.
15:43And we all agree that, therefore, Ukraine must be in a position of strength to go to the negotiation table.
15:51And this is why we Europeans have decided to provide Ukraine with a loan of 90 billion euros for 2026 and 2027.
16:03With this support, we make sure that Ukraine can bolster its defence on the battlefield, strengthen its defence capabilities for a peace agreement and keep basic services running.
16:18Above all, it reaffirms Europe's unwavering commitment to the security, the defence and the European future of Ukraine.
16:30And in parallel, we decided to permanently immobilise the Russian assets and that we reserve the right to make use of them.
16:44This should serve as a stark reminder to Russia and as a message to the world.
16:51Europe will always stand with Ukraine until there is a just and lasting peace.
17:07Ladies and gentlemen, I have spoken a lot today about European independence.
17:12On partnerships, on prosperity and security.
17:19So I would like to conclude with Greenland.
17:24An issue which cuts to the heart of all three of these imperatives.
17:32When it comes to the security of the Arctic region, Europe is fully committed.
17:41And we share the objectives of the United States in this regard.
17:46For instance, our EU member, Finland, one of the newest NATO members, is selling its first icebreakers to the United States.
17:57And this shows that we have the capability right here in the ice, so to speak.
18:04It shows that our northern NATO members have Arctic-ready forces right now.
18:10And above all, that Arctic security can only be achieved together.
18:16And this is why the proposed additional tariffs are a mistake, especially between long-standing allies.
18:28The European Union and the United States have agreed to a trade deal last July.
18:35And in politics, as in business, a deal is a deal.
18:41And when friends shake hands, it must mean something.
18:48Ladies and gentlemen, we consider the people of the United States not just our allies, but our friends.
18:56And plunging us into a downward spiral would only aid the very adversaries we are both so committed to keeping out of the strategic landscape.
19:08So our response will be unflinching, united and proportional.
19:17But beyond this, we have to be strategic about how we approach this issue.
19:23And this is why we are working on a package to support Arctic security.
19:28First principle.
19:30Full solidarity with Greenland and the Kingdom of Denmark.
19:34The sovereignty and integrity of their territory is non-negotiable.
19:40Second, we are working on a massive European investment surge in Greenland.
19:47We will work with Greenland and Denmark hand-in-hand to see how we can further support the local economy and infrastructure.
19:59Third, we will work with the United States and all partners on wider Arctic security.
20:08This is clearly in our shared interest and we will step up our investment.
20:15In particular, I believe we should use our defence spending surge on a European icebreaker capability and other equipment vital to the Arctic security.
20:27And fourth, in the same spirit, we need to work with all our regional partners to strengthen our common security.
20:39And this is why we will look at how to strengthen our security partnerships with partners such as the UK, Canada, Norway, Iceland and others.
20:52Finally, I believe Europe needs to adjust to a new security architecture and realities that we are now facing.
21:01And this is why Europe is preparing its own security strategy, which we plan to publish later this year.
21:07And as part of this, we are upgrading our Arctic strategy too.
21:13And at the heart of this will be the fundamental principle, it is for sovereign people to decide their own future.
21:24Ladies and gentlemen, when I started preparing for this year's address, security in the High North was not the main theme.
21:36But in many ways, it feeds into the wider point I started with today.
21:43That Europe must speed up its push for independence from security to economy, from defence to democracy.
21:53Having the dialogue with our friends and partners, also if necessary with adversaries.
21:59The point is that the world has changed permanently and we need to change with it.
22:06And therefore, thank you and long live Europe.
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