Felipe VI reminds NATO that threats to Europe also come from the south

"The global struggle between tyranny and democracy remains more relevant than ever," says the monarch

MADRID, 28 Jun. (EUROPA PRESS) -

King Felipe VI defended this Tuesday that if the war in Ukraine has revealed anything, it is that the "struggle between tyranny and democracy" that was believed to have been left behind is still in force and that NATO is more relevant in this context than ever and a "beacon of freedom" must be protected. Likewise, he has recalled that the threats to Europe also come from the south.

During his speech at the Public Forum organized by the Elcano Royal Institute and other European 'think-tanks' on the margins of the NATO summit in Madrid, Don Felipe highlighted the opportunity that this meeting provides to reflect on the future of the Alliance "at what appears to be a turning point in history."

In this regard, he stressed that Europe, which is seeking its political stability, economic prosperity and social welfare, is today facing "an increasingly unstable neighbourhood, both in the east and in the south, and the complex challenge of a chronically unpredictable world.

The Russian invasion of Ukraine is calling into question many of the beliefs that have existed in Europe and in the West for a long time, he stressed, pointing out that the war in Ukraine has taught "how important it is to rally global support in defense of a rule-based order in Europe".

In this regard, he indicated that there are reasons to trust that the transatlantic relationship is "stronger than ever" and that Europe "has remained united in the face of intolerable Russian aggression."

"Twenty years ago we congratulated ourselves on the fact that Europe had never been so safe, prosperous or free", the King asserted, recalling that, since then, "many of our assumptions or predictions seem to have evaporated" and "many of our hopes " seem to have become "utopian ideals".

Thus, he stressed that "the long global struggle between tyranny and democracy remains more relevant than ever." "The competition between great powers is everywhere and the war continues", she stressed, to then defend "the relevance and critical need to preserve the Atlantic Alliance".

The current context highlights the importance of NATO as a "credible deterrent against any security threat", as well as the "importance of military force", but above all, said Don Felipe, its relevance as a "political community, the best expression of transatlantic unity".

Felipe VI, who has maintained that "the Alliance is demonstrating its value as a beacon of freedom" whose values ​​are also shared by other countries and have a "strong universal appeal", has highlighted the importance of "unity and freedom" in " a world defined by the return of competition between great powers and the renewed struggle between democracy and autocracy".

Thus, he stressed that "events in and around Europe will probably be increasingly affected by exogenous forces" and drew attention to the fact that "the focus of world economic growth, military competition and technological rivalry is heading towards the Indo-Pacific", in clear reference to China but without expressly mentioning it.

"This means that we cannot turn our backs on broader geostrategic events," the monarch warned, emphasizing that if the war in Ukraine has taught anything, it is the importance of defending "a rules-based order in Europe."

NATO leaders will therefore have to decide at this summit on the "right balance between responding to immediate threats in Eastern Europe and the need to deal with long-term and systemic challenges", also the balance between political and military dimension of the Alliance and prepare it for "competition between great powers without losing sight of other challenges such as terrorism or the nexus between climate and security".

To do this, he has opted to look beyond the confines of the Euro-Atlantic space, although getting support from these countries "is proving to be considerably difficult." "This will be the central challenge for the Atlantic community in the coming years and decades, especially as strategic competitors continue to question the institutional and normative basis" on which the international order is based.

In this regard, he argued that Spain is in an "ideal position" to bring NATO closer to Latin America and Africa, "both geopolitically and because of our shared will to serve as a bridge between the Atlantic, Europe and the Mediterranean".