Former Italian Prime Minister and European Central Bank President Mario Draghi has called for the European Union to transform from a confederation into a federal United States of Europe, arguing that only deeper integration can ensure the continent's survival in an increasingly unstable world.
The proposal, reported by EU News, arrives at a moment of existential crisis for Europe. The continent faces American unreliability, Russian aggression, and Chinese economic pressure simultaneously, challenges that Draghi argues cannot be met by the EU's current institutional architecture.
Draghi's credibility on European matters is unmatched. As ECB president during the eurozone crisis, his commitment to do whatever it takes to save the single currency effectively ended speculation against the euro. His subsequent tenure as Italian prime minister stabilized one of Europe's most politically volatile major economies.
To understand today's headlines, we must look at yesterday's decisions. Federalist visions have been part of European discourse since the 1950s, but they have consistently foundered on member state sovereignty concerns. Previous federalist proposals came during periods of relative global stability, when the costs of continued division seemed abstract.
The current moment is fundamentally different. European leaders confront the possibility that American security guarantees cannot be assumed, that Russian revisionism may be a permanent feature, and that China views Europe as an economic battleground. These challenges, Draghi argues, require capabilities that only a federal structure can provide.
The practical obstacles remain formidable. A federal Europe would require member states to surrender core sovereign powers, including taxation, defense, and foreign policy. Such transfers would face intense domestic opposition across the continent, from French Gaullists to Polish nationalists to Dutch fiscal hawks.
Yet Draghi's intervention may shift the boundaries of political possibility. When figures of his stature advocate positions previously considered unrealistic, those positions move toward the mainstream. The question becomes not whether federalism is desirable in the abstract, but whether the alternatives are viable.
European defense integration provides a case study. For decades, proposals for European military forces independent of NATO were dismissed as fantasy. Recent American policy has made such arrangements seem not only possible but potentially necessary for survival.
Similar logic may apply to fiscal, economic, and political integration. Draghi is arguing that Europe faces a choice between federation and irrelevance. Whether European publics and political leaders accept that framing will determine the continent's trajectory for generations.
The proposal will face immediate skepticism from national capitals jealously guarding their prerogatives. However, Draghi's record suggests he would not advance such arguments without believing the moment demands them. His interventions have historically marked turning points in European integration, for better or worse.
