World
Von der Leyen called for strengthening European security, supporting Ukraine and restricting minors’ access to social media
The President of the European Commission outlined in Strasbourg an agenda focused on defense, climate, trade, artificial intelligence and child protection. She also proposed closer ties with Canada.
The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, said this Wednesday before the European Parliament in Strasbourg that the European Union faces a hostile international environment, marked by the war in Ukraine, industrial competition, trade tensions, the climate crisis and the challenges of artificial intelligence, according to her State of the Union address cited by France 24.
During her remarks, she said the bloc must respond to those seeking to weaken European unity and argued that the future of the continent must remain in the hands of Europeans. In that context, she proposed creating a European Security Council that would bring together the EU with partners such as Canada, the United Kingdom and Norway, as well as an emergency protocol to coordinate common responses to crises.
Von der Leyen also promised the “strongest support” for Ukraine during the coming winter. According to France 24, she said the EU and its partners will provide humanitarian aid, reinforce energy and heating supplies and strengthen Ukraine’s air defenses. At the same time, she proposed reducing dependence on a single supplier for interceptor missiles through the joint development with Ukraine of a modular air defense system.
On trade, she warned that the relationship with China had reached a critical point because of a goods trade deficit she described as unsustainable. She said the EU will use all tools at its disposal to rebalance that relationship and also highlighted Europe’s dependence on critical minerals, especially rare earths. In that regard, she announced the creation of a new European critical raw materials corporation to facilitate the procurement and storage of those resources, according to France 24.
The head of the European executive also promised a new plan for heat waves and a climate insurance alliance aimed at expanding coverage against extreme weather events. She said that today only around 25% of losses from disasters in Europe are covered by private insurance, again according to what France 24 reported.
On artificial intelligence, she said Europe’s future prosperity and security will depend on how it manages the advance of that technology alongside climate change. She announced that she will convene the leading frontier AI labs to discuss how to address their risks, and she defended the European rules recently adopted in the field.
In the section devoted to protecting minors, she proposed banning access to social media for children under 15, with adult-supervised accounts for those between 13 and 15, according to France 24. In another report on the same speech, the same outlet said the ban would apply to children under 13 and would also include online games and chatbots.
Von der Leyen also used the speech to call for a closer relationship with Canada. In the presence of Prime Minister Mark Carney as a special guest, she said the EU is opening the door for that country to become the bloc’s first associate member, a figure that, according to France 24, does not exist in the European treaties.
Sources
About this note. Written by El Notero with assistance from artificial intelligence, based on what was published by the cited outlet. El Notero did not conduct its own reporting on this event.
