Former European Central Bank President Mario Draghi warned that Europe must quickly adapt to a new geopolitical reality in which the United States has become "more hostile and unpredictable" and "may no longer guarantee our security," Politico quoted him as saying.
In a speech in Aachen, Germany, upon receiving the International Charlemagne Prize for contributing to European unity, Draghi said: "For the first time in living memory, we are truly alone together".
His remarks come against a backdrop of mounting economic and political challenges facing the EU, including weak economic growth and a widening productivity gap with the US. According to Draghi, the pressure on Europe has intensified since Donald Trump returned to the White House and Washington's more confrontational policy on trade and security issues.
The former Italian prime minister, who in 2024 presented a plan to restore the EU's competitiveness, stressed that European countries must rethink their strategic dependencies.
"Every strategic dependency now needs to be reassessed," Draghi stressed to an audience that included German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, ECB President Christine Lagarde and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis.
He warned that "if openness remains our only answer, it becomes a lack of a solution".
Dragi highlighted artificial intelligence, defense and energy infrastructure as key areas where Europe must urgently increase investment to protect competitiveness and its security.
However, he said, the EU decision-making process often "waters down and delays" the necessary measures until they are insufficient to achieve the goals.
"Weak implementation undermines legitimacy, and weak legitimacy makes implementation even more difficult. We need to break this cycle," he added.