Obama’s speech in Brussels: “US and Europe together against the forces of the past”

At the Bozar the American President dedicated his speech to Ukraine, which “waged a revolution without firing a shot.” He attacked Russia, yet he said “the worlds has benefited when it chooses to cooperate”

In an overcrowded room that welcomed him like a true rock-star, the President of the uniteUnited States, Barack Obama, has focused his speech on Ukraine, which “waged a revolution inspired by our shared ideals without firing a shot,” while the real target was Russia, to which he has proposed future cooperation, and Europe, the land of “democracy” which needs to choose its side.

Over 2,000 “common” persons were invited at the speech, held into a room of the Bozar Palace in Brussels, and they had been waiting for two hours together with the highest ranks of European institutions: the European Parliament President, Martin Schulz, sitting next to his liberal challenger at the forthcoming elections, Guy Verhofstadt – they quite had fun together – the European Council President, Herman Van Rompuy, the President of the European Commission, José Manuel Barroso, and the High Representative of the EU for Foreing Policy, Baroness Catherine Ashton, the Commissioner for the EU Olli Rehn, Lazlo Andor and Joaquín Almunia; the Belgian Prime Minister, Elio di Rupo, with several members of his cabinet. The only ones allowed to avoid the waiting time were, of course, the Belgian Royals, Philip and Matilde, welcomed by a warm applause by the standing participants.

Obama started his speech very far away in the time with the First and the Second World Wars: “America joined with Europe to reject the darker forces of the past and build a new architecture of peace,” and it was there and with the Marshall Plan “that across the Atlantic, we embraced a shared vision of Europe, a vision based on representative democracy, individual rights, and a belief that nations can meet the interests of their citizens.” And nowadays European citizens are “are more secure and more prosperous because we stood together for the ideals we shared.”

And these ideals “also inspired movements across the globe, among those very people, ironically, who had too often been denied their full rights by Western powers,” as “people from Africa threw off the yoke of colonialism to secure their independence, US citizens put an end to segregation and to secure their civil rights, and the iron fist of apartheid was unclenched and Nelson Mandela emerged upright, proud, from prison.” Thanks to these ideals, young people “were born in a place and a time where there is less conflict, more prosperity and more freedom than any time in human history.” But “that’s not because man’s darkest impulses have vanished, even here in Europe we’ve seen ethnic cleansing in the Balkans that shocked the conscience.” Hence, said Obama, “we must never take for granted the progress that has been won here in Europe and advanced around the world, because the contest of ideas continues for your generation,” and “that’s what is at stake in Ukraine.”

And this is the reason why, even though “Our economy is not deeply integrated with Ukraine’s, our own borders are not threatened,” if “we decide to look the other way,” than “we would ignore the lessons that are written in the cemeteries of this continent, we would allow the old way of doing things to regain a foothold in this young century. And that message would be heard all around the world.”

I’m not naive, added Obama, “I believe this because these ideals that we affirm are true. These ideals are universal.” In fact, “we believe in democracy, with elections that are free and fair, and independent judiciaries and opposition parties, civil society and uncensored information so that individuals can make their own choices. Yes, we believe in open economies based on free markets and innovation and individual initiative and entrepreneurship and trade and investment that creates a broader prosperity.”

That’s why “Russia’s violation of international law, its assault on Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, must be met with condemnation,” because “the principles that have meant so much to Europe and the world must be lifted up.” And that’s why “together, we’ve condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and rejected the legitimacy of the Crimean referendum.” In the meantime, “we will combine our substantial pressure on Russia with an open door for diplomacy.”

The United States and NATO “do not seek any conflict with Russia,” underlined Obama, the Usa “claim to be the sole arbiter of what is right or wrong in the world,” yet “part of what makes us different is that we welcome criticism.” Recently “we welcomed Russia into the G-8,” and from the reduction of nuclear arms to the elimination of Syria’s chemical weapons, “we believe the world has benefited when Russia chooses to cooperate on the basis of mutual interests and mutual respect.” That’s why “we want the Russian people to live in security, prosperity and dignity, proud of their own history,” but “that does not mean that Russia can run roughshod over its neighbors, just because Russia has a deep history with Ukraine does not mean it should be able to dictate Ukraine’s future.” Furthermore, Obama has rejcted as “absurd” the suggestion that “America is somehow conspiring with fascists inside of Ukraine” given that US and EU together have fought against Nazism and Fascism: “We Americans remember well the unimaginable sacrifices made by the Russian people in World War II, and we have honored those sacrifices.” And keeping all this in mind, he concluded, “I believe that if we hold firm to our principles and are willing to back our beliefs with courage and resolve, then hope will ultimately overcome fear, and freedom will continue to triumph over tyranny, because that is what forever stirs in the human heart.”

Alfonso Bianchi