(Strasbourg) “Russia is not invincible. We must help Ukraine win this war. The security of Ukraine and Europe is at stake”. Petteri Orpo, Prime Minister of Finland, gave a speech in Strasbourg – invited by the European Parliament – about the future of Europe. Words, his, who were mainly focussed on security, defence, the Russian threat. The tone of his speech is understandable, considering that Finland is Russia’s “neighbour” and shares 1,300 kilometres of border with it. “This time requires courage, determination. The Russian aggression against Ukraine confirms that peace is fragile”.

“We cannot depend on others for our security and energy”: hence the promise of “commitment from my country for a strong and cohesive Europe”. Three are the items on this sort of “programme” for the EU.  First, “we have to strengthen Europe’s Strategic Competitiveness. The reason our economic competitiveness is so crucial is simple. Europe is falling behind in productivity. Our standard of living is diminishing compared to the USA and China. We need investments, we need to strengthen the single market, less bureaucracy, lighter taxation, innovation and research”. Secondly, he lingers again on “global security”, which requires “strengthening the defence industry”. Thirdly, he mentioned climate and the environment.