What Draghi said to Biden
Draghi's visit to the USA: significance and political perspectives for Italy and Europe. The intervention of Francesco Provinciali
The results of globalization have created the conditions for a new world order: Federico Rampini was well aware of this when he theorized that NATO's 70th anniversary had more the appearance of an announced funeral than of an anniversary that would have strengthened the ties between member countries .
The meeting between Biden and Draghi in Washington therefore took on an even necessary symbolic meaning: it was time to get out of the shallows of the equidistance between Italy and Europe on the one hand and the USA and Russia on the other, it has been going on for several years and is supported from relations of friendship and harmony between various representatives of the politics of our country and Putin himself, misunderstanding trips to Moscow, no perceived awareness of a change of scenarios at an international level nor of a long and silent campaign of disinformation of public opinion through an undercover infiltration in journalistic and television networks (there were political conversions in the media during the Russian attack on the Ukrainian nation that are making the metaphor of the road to Damascus pale. COPASIR is working on it and we hope that the investigation is undertaken on its own by some Public Prosecutor's Office because of public information ca there must be no coverings of state secrets, no joking because there are enormous influencing and suggestion interests at stake) without forgetting the obsession with EU thirdness not substantiated by a precise identity connotation.
For years and years Europe has denied its historical and civilization roots, overexposing itself to Islamic fundamentalism, giving in to the lure of Turkey, opening up to the cultural and economic flows of autarchic countries and with increasing military spending while we condicio, ecumenical pacifism and the phobia of inclusion tout court were the dominant themes.
We have not developed firm convictions on the value of our millenary traditions, we have become a land of conquest for the economic powers of the multinationals disguised under the noble aegis of international cooperation.
But the aggressions stop only if one is equipped, with a solid institutional, organizational and military order, albeit in the context – let it be clear – of defensive clauses which (nevertheless) must be flaunted and demonstrated with endowments of means.
But as soon as the Tsar showed his aggressive intentions, razing an entire nation to the ground, denying it the principle of independence, sovereignty and self-determination, destroying cities and killing defenseless civilians, unimagined threats of "cupio dissolvi" materialize, Always neutral countries such as Finland, Sweden and Switzerland itself have applied for political asylum in the Atlantic alliance.
For decades the old continent and our country have not dealt with the question of energy sources, with the supply of raw materials, recklessly and guiltily imagining that the geopolitical and geoeconomic balances remain stable and do not create future problems. As Giuseppe Sabella keenly observes in his paper on the economic causes that led Putin to move to the conquest of Ukraine, there is the extraordinary wealth that this country boasts worldwide in the deposits of precious metals. Uranium (among the top three exporters in the world), titanium (tenth exporter), iron ores and manganese (second exporter) are extracted in the Ukrainian shield: all fundamental raw materials for light alloys (titanium) and also for steel and stainless steel (iron and manganese minerals). Furthermore, in its territory there are lithium deposits, called "white gold", essential for the production of batteries.
And upstream or downstream of this there is the aim of becoming the largest production area of raw materials, allied with the largest manufacturing country in the world, with a planetary and hegemonic export potential: China.
The intuition of Draghi, but also of Macron and Schulz concerns precisely the consolidation of the Atlantic alliance and the defense of the values and history of the West. In this sense, if the sanctions are having a disruptive effect in the cf. of the Russian economy (even with the inevitable negative returns that turn against those who emanate them) and it was Draghi's idea to freeze the assets of the Russian Central Bank abroad.
For its part, China's sly attitude recalls that man sitting on the bank of the river as he waited for the corpse of his enemy to pass. We will see if and how long understandings and sympathies last.
But the main merit of Draghi's mission to the USA is that he went to illustrate to Biden the dangers facing Europe, to highlight the potential disastrous consequences for America itself and above all – to talk about peace, the need to focus every diplomatic commitment and the orientation of the UN and NATO towards this prospect to be realized in a short time.
Draghi is obviously worried about the long-term negative economic repercussions for the EU, the national PNRRs of the member states are affected, as well as the political threat that on 9 May Putin seems to have reduced to a hypothesis of direct commitment of the Atlantic alliance in the conflict. In line with President Mattarella, our premier has never denied the need to support Ukraine with means, equipment and armaments.
As a statesman he knows that – as Henry Kissinger argued – states do not have prejudicial enemies but cogent and compelling interests. But in the meantime, it collects the prestigious Distinguished Leadership Award 2022, delivered by US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen.
Our Prime Minister has in fact authoritatively imposed a line with no ifs and buts on the government that presides, on the strength of the fact that apart from a few punches on the table of those who "demand" explanations, "a dog that barks does not bite" especially as the elections approach of 2023 (if not anticipated for some unfortunate header of the idiot on duty).
The arguments of the cogitants and doubters, nihilists and deniers are specious, real rhetorical figures of (worse) style.
Despite the fact that Italy is in practice the only EU country that expresses 37.4% of pro-Russian citizens, thanks to a spurious, mystified and self-defeating disinformation campaign.
The history of NATO's encirclement towards Russia is truly unsustainable: the negationist positions of many opinion-makers on the military matrix of the Bucha and Kramatorsk massacres, on the destruction of Mariupol, on the expansionist aims of the Tsar with the blessing of the Orthodox Church are less acceptable. and his Patriarch Kirill who – as Caprarica recalled – boasts a personal fortune of several billion dollars and runs with a $ 30,000 watch on his wrist: even for the do-gooders-pacifincers of interreligious culture, the comparison with the Crucifix of steel of Pope Francis (who has given up on meeting Kirill himself in Moscow). Kirill blesses the war, Francis the peace.
Draghi therefore did what he was entitled to as head of government of a country of the Atlantic Alliance: I do not understand that he knelt in front of Biden but that he explained to him the reasons for the end of the conflict and the need for a stable peace and lasting. On the contrary, he spoke openly of peace.
As the American political scientist and sociologist Charles Tilly said … "States make wars and wars make states".
Mario Draghi is aware of this and is well aware that geopolitics and geoeconomics are not always superimposable as they often end up prefiguring interests and scenarios that are not exactly coincident.
However, the invasion of Ukraine by Russia was certainly an epochal event, full of meanings and unfortunately susceptible to interpretative polarizations. Now I believe that the political realism of our Prime Minister has led him to make choices and take clear and necessary positions, I dare say not only for Italy but with an assumption of responsibility that the whole of Europe must share because, in the apical phase of the conflict, its role and destinies were questioned, in dramatic and almost final terms. For this reason, the visit to Washington by the Italian premier was not an occasional trip but on the one hand it characterized the prevailing orientation in the Italian government expressed by his political guide, on the other hand it contributed to a rapprochement between Italy and Europe with the USA ( and vice versa), highlighting a favorable reciprocity of interests.
There are other open and not yet clarified scenarios, determined by a general orientation politically attributable to the Conte government: from the Silk Road Memorandum, to the economic agreements with China for the supply of masks, scooters and cell phones (famous are those purchased by the army and then sent to pulp because the results are fake to capture military information: a news of November 2019 that lasted a dog yawn).
It is to be hoped that Draghi will also clarify these aspects before handing over the bell to his successor.
Hoping that in the meantime the moderate front will be strengthened and a political center capable of giving stability and a line of direction without giving in to the next executive will be established. Trusting that the parties will understand once and for all every clear and hidden meaning of an unwritten aphorism that goes around in politics: “there is no going back”.
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/mondo/draghi-biden-cosa-ha-detto/ on Thu, 12 May 2022 09:43:45 +0000.