Calenda in Cagliari: "Putin will attack, the EU risks disappearing."
The leader of Azione told L'Unione Sarda: "We need a truly federal Europe." And on Todde: "He did a good job at the ministry, but when it comes to far-reaching decisions, if you bring ideology into it, you'll never get out of it."
Russia's attack. NATO withdraws, Europe falters. At the end of the film, the EU dies. Except it's not an adaptation of John Le Carré: according to Carlo Calenda, that's what will happen soon if the Old Continent isn't capable of an immediate political revival. The leader of Azione will speak about it tonight in Cagliari (at 6:30 pm at the Regina Margherita Hotel), at the presentation of his book "Defending Freedom - Europe's Hour": "For the first time since 1945, we are outside the protection of the United States," Calenda reasoned on the eve of his Sardinian stop. "Indeed, the US, like China and Russia, want the European Union to cease to exist, exposing individual states to economic conquest, or political influence; or physical conquest, for the Eastern European countries. This is the most dramatic moment, or, to use Churchill's words, the darkest hour, that Europe has experienced since the post-war period.
Is it just the fault of external aggression? Or are European institutions playing a part?
The European institutions are completely paralyzed, all states are in pre-electoral mode. The incredible thing is that, while this siege is unfolding, we are imploding. Instead of reacting, every country seems to be moving toward extremism that is accelerating the process of implosion.
But Europe is very different from what its founders dreamed of.
There are many things that Europe is doing and has done. In the book, I mention that it saved us during Covid, because if the ECB hadn't bought government bonds, we would have gone bankrupt. Just as it did with Draghi during the sovereign debt crisis. Now there's a plan to disengage from the US defense industry: American weapons purchases have fallen below 50 percent. There are agreements with Canada and Mercosur... It's not that there's a lack of positive action.
But they are not enough to strengthen Europe on the world stage.
"The problem is that we need a truly federal Europe. If we politicians don't do this, everything else will be irrelevant. And we will be judged on this, not anything else."
The soldiers themselves stopped him thanks to the descriptions provided by the victims
Emanuele Floris
the emergency
Bomb scares in hundreds of schools: evacuations also required in Sardinia
An identical email was sent to numerous Italian schools: students in public squares from Cagliari to Sassari. Crosetto: "Strategy, but there are also idiots and mythomaniacs."
Fratelli d'Italia councilor Cristina Usai has submitted a question to the Todde administration.
Claudio Modesto Ronchi
A federal Europe implies a greater transfer of sovereignty from individual states.
"There is no doubt."
And how is this possible, at a time when sovereignisms prevail?
"Actually, two interesting aspects prevail, which underscore the general madness. In Eurostat surveys, the number of people calling for a more integrated Europe is now at an all-time high. But this doesn't translate into votes for pro-European parties, because citizens don't perceive the risk of Europe's dissolution. So you have 70% of the Italian population who want a single European citizenship and at the same time perhaps vote for Vannacci, or M5S, or Meloni, or Salvini. A paradox that's difficult to explain."
Do you think there is a real risk of dissolution?
"Certainly. It will happen when Putin attacks a NATO country to demonstrate that NATO, and thus European solidarity, no longer exists. This, in my opinion, is a certainty, not a risk. It will happen after the American midterm elections."
What kind of attack do you imagine?
"It won't be an invasion: it will be a demonstration attack, presumably against a Baltic country. Russia will launch a few drones at a military site. The United States will withdraw, and so will NATO. Northern European countries will ask Southern Europe for military assets, which will say no. The Nordic countries will respond: fine, but then we won't guarantee the security of your public debts with the euro. That's how the dissolution will begin."
A stronger EU requires its own defense: but rearmament is not popular with public opinion.
"Look, many people buy a reinforced door or a home alarm, even if they cost thousands of euros and they wouldn't want to, because everything that matters to us is inside the house. No longer connected to the great history, today we don't think it's possible to end up at war with Russia. Yet this is not only possible: it's certain. And it's not the only risk Europe faces."
What is it referring to?
For example, the fact that, having abandoned nuclear power, we depend largely on American gas. If we want to regulate social media, Trump will prevent us, because otherwise he won't give us gas. The same goes for jet fuel, imported from America: if Trump gets angry, starting tomorrow our planes won't take off. But these things aren't discussed on television. Politics has become a form of entertainment, and politicians are influencers. Today, we are a West made up of people who consume and entertain themselves.
Almost a decadence worthy of the late Empire. How can one react ?
Well, it's the collapse of Western civilization. We'll recover if citizens react, and for them to react, they need to be aware of the dangers. This year, gas storage is at an all-time low, we're really at risk of rationing: is anyone talking about that? We're reacting with proposals, and trying to win over voters through balance. As I speak to you, I'm on my way to the Senate to vote on the majority's measure reopening nuclear power in Italy, because I think it's right. And at the same time, I support the minimum wage proposed by the other opposition parties. We need to rediscover cross-party cohesion on key issues.
Is there still room for that cross-party cohesion? For centrist reasoning?
There has to be. For 30 years, we've been voting for either the right or the left, which are becoming increasingly extremist, and when they get into government, they don't keep the unfulfillable promises they've made and breed new extremism. It happened with Renzi, the Five Star Movement, and then on the right with Salvini and Meloni. Continued extremism produces social division, inefficiency in government, and a rejection of politics.
What do you think about the elimination of car tax?
"It's a fairer measure than the excise tax cut, because it's limited to low-engine cars: simply put, Ferrari owners don't benefit. But it's worth little compared to the high cost of gasoline. I proposed reducing cigarettes, which are the cheapest in our country: a pack costs 6 euros, in France 14. I'm not suggesting lowering it to 14, but even an extra euro per pack would generate good revenue."
And what about the cap on foreigners in class?
The law is completely useless: the limit is already in place, and they had plenty of time to implement it. Making it now is just election campaigning. If there are classes with many students who don't speak Italian, new schools should be opened with new teachers. It's right, however, to ban the full veil in classrooms. It probably affects 500 girls across Italy, but it's a sound principle.
Does the new electoral law make life difficult for the centrist option?
I think it makes things much easier. Previously, there were 25% of constituencies where no party outside the coalition could have a say. Meanwhile, the reform requires at least 42% to obtain the majority bonus, which neither the right nor the left will achieve. Because the right won't accept Vannacci in its coalition, and because we will be independent. The only way to save this country is for the majority in Parliament to be formed on the basis of a shared program; and for us to become indispensable, so that we can defend certain fundamental values.
Which majority would you agree to participate in?
"One based on these commitments: removing the right of veto in the European Council, building a European NATO, supporting Ukraine, and an energy and environmental policy compatible with Italy remaining a manufacturing nation. The rest is debatable, but these points are our red line. And they're not on anyone's agenda, which is why we don't ally ourselves with the major powerhouses."
Many accuse you of actually wanting to move towards Meloni.
"Instead, when I signed for the minimum wage, Renzi accused me of wanting to join Campo Largo. Except now he's in Campo Largo, and I'm stuck where the voters put me. Since its inception, Action has remained in the same place, making pragmatism and objectivity the cornerstones of its decisions. Then they can accuse me of whatever they want."
So you're going to the next general election alone?
"Azione will build a pro-European and reformist center. There will be people like Pina Picierno, I hope also the Liberal Democrats, and others as well."
To aim for what result?
I've run in two elections with the center, once with Scelta Civica, once with Terzo Polo. We got around 8% both times. I think this time, too, is a more than achievable goal. And if we get 8% and Vannacci gets the same, mathematically there won't be a right-wing or left-wing government, but one will have to be formed in Parliament, starting from the center.
Are you afraid of the Vannacci phenomenon?
"Very much. Also because he's an ally of Putin, ever since he was military attaché in Moscow and said Russia would never invade Ukraine. There are major shadows over him, for example, the massive orders for thousands of his books in August 2023, when no one knew who he was. There's a Russian-backed operation there. If the center-right were to open up to Vannacci, then the situation would change, and so would Azione's positioning."
In the sense that at that point a broad constitutional defense coalition would make sense?
"Yes, at that point it would make sense and should include, and would include, Forza Italia as well."
Why do you consider yourself incompatible with Conte and the M5S? Because Conte is a populist quick-change artist who has destroyed public finances, throwing €253 billion into the super bonus, which would have provided healthcare, education, and security for ten years. He openly supports Putin and wants to abandon Ukraine. He governed with Salvini and then claimed he was progressive. He's incapable of governing, but I believe this is unfortunately a problem for the entire Five Star Movement.
You mentioned nuclear power earlier. There's a heated debate in Sardinia about the energy transition and the impact of renewable energy plants on the landscape.
"There's certainly an impact, so we support nuclear power: a power plant on 200 hectares produces as much as a photovoltaic system on 60,000 hectares. I'd ask President Todde and the 5 Star Movement: what do they support? No gas, no coal, no wind turbines: so what's the solution? Should we pedal?"
Yet she had expressed esteem for Alessandra Todde.
"Yes, because at the ministry she had worked well on corporate crises, she had been very diligent and present. But then when you have to make broader decisions, if you bring ideology into it, you won't get out of it."
The problem is also that renewable energy systems don't benefit the local area or Sardinians' energy bills. What can be done?
"It can't be done. Otherwise, Sardinians shouldn't benefit from the single gas price based on Italian production. Local compensation already exists, but we can't expect the benefits to remain local. This is a type of regionalism I don't agree with. Let's build the plants that can be built without damaging the landscape; there are areas in your country that allow it, too. And now, excuse me, but I have to say goodbye: I'm off to the chamber to vote for nuclear power."
Joseph Meloni
Calenda in Cagliari: "Putin will attack, the EU risks disappearing."
