Opening – Renewing hope

Russia’s military aggression against Ukraine has tested the resilience of our democracies and economies. Deemed weak, dependent, and naïve in the face of past aggressions of lesser magnitude, they faced up more unitedly and firmly when the main thing was at stake: democracy and respect for territorial sovereignty. We also remember the heated debates – between governments, economists, and businesses – on the impact of a halt to Russian gas supplies: the risk of a major recession was brandished (the German Chancellor spoke of hundreds of thousands of jobs being destroyed). But the pessimists were wrong, and Europe escaped recession in 2022: governments, households and businesses have found the means to adapt to the energy shock. The war has highlighted our vulnerabilities, but has it accelerated the necessary political, economic, and environmental transformations and investments? Are the considerable progress and adaptability we have demonstrated a source of hope for the future, or the last outbursts of a model in crisis? Is the rebound in European political unity sustainable, or will it crumble in the face of our divergent interests?