The European Union must decide whether it can act decisively in an increasingly unstable global environment or risk becoming “at best, an open-air museum,” warned Polish Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Radosław Sikorski during a visit to the European University Institute (EUI) on 19 March 2026.
Speaking at the inauguration of the EU Security Initiative (EUSI) lecture series, Sikorski addressed the challenges facing Europe amid shifting geopolitical dynamics, rising Euroscepticism, and growing uncertainty around established alliances. The discussion focused on the future of European security and diplomacy at a time when, as he described it, “wrecking balls are flying around us.”
Opening the event, EUI President Patrizia Nanz stressed the importance of broad public engagement in addressing these issues: “These questions should not be addressed only by experts, but by all of us as members of democratic societies,” she said.
Invited by the EU Security Initiative (EUSI), an EUI initiative promoting forward-looking, values-based dialogue and research on European security and defence, Sikorski outlined three core priorities for the European Union: defending its interests, maintaining competitiveness, and safeguarding democratic freedoms. “One cannot function without the other,” he emphasised.
The event also marked a significant step forward in institutional cooperation. During Sikorski’s visit, the EUI signed a new partnership agreement with the Łukasiewicz Institute of Innovation and Technology (ITECH). The agreement was formalised by EUI President Patrizia Nanz and Director of ITECH Michał Matlak, who highlighted the importance of the partnership in strengthening collaboration on joint research projects and facilitating staff mobility between the two institutions.
Cooperation between the EUI and ITECH will focus primarily on security-related research, while also encompassing training activities and staff exchanges in areas of shared strategic importance. As part of this collaboration, the institutions will jointly prepare the ‘EUSI Policy Dialogue’ in Nicosia, scheduled for the end of May 2026 in connection with the Cypriot Presidency of the Council of the European Union.
The lecture and partnership agreement together underscore the EUI’s commitment to fostering dialogue, research, and cooperation aimed at addressing Europe’s most pressing challenges in an evolving global landscape.
Read more on the EU Security Initiative at the EUI.