What Antonio spoke about.

Madam President, I am glad that this important report is voted on this week. I would like to thank all the Members who contributed to the final text; I would especially like to thank the shadow rapporteurs for their work. We were very ambitious from the beginning. We wanted to have a text that could send a strong and clear political signal on the role of the European Union in defence matters. We also wanted this report to be voted on in committee before the NATO Summit and the European Union Summit with the United States. I am pleased that the conclusions of both summits are largely in line with our report, showing that the European Union can truly be an added value to the current transatlantic defence structure. Ladies and gentlemen, the report naturally highlights the importance of our transatlantic partnership. It also highlights our common history, our common values and our common successes. The report clearly states that this is a unique opportunity for closer cooperation between the European Union and NATO. Member States are currently establishing the strategic compass for European security and defence based on joint threat analysis. At the same time, NATO updates its strategic concept, highlighting the Alliance's vision for its security environment and goals for the next decade. Both projects will provide a clear window of opportunity to set coherent priorities and identify additional synergies. As regards the sharing of responsibilities —burden-sharing—The report argues that Europe must redouble its efforts to develop its own defence capabilities and ensure that it does so in complementarity with NATO. In the text we consistently demonstrate that the instruments and competences of the European Union can contribute to NATO's mandate. Some people have always been skeptical about the idea of the European Union as an active actor with its own defence capabilities. But I think that after a few years in which Europe felt alone in the world, initiatives such as PESCO or the EDF are now seen as a necessity, rather than a luxury. The European Union is not an obstacle to the main defence interests of NATO or the United States. Indeed, the European Union can be a complementary actor that helps to avoid redundancy and duplication. U.S. participation in the PESCO military mobility project is further evidence. The report highlights that Member States and NATO allies face a common reality of systematic competition, alongside new common threats, which have a significant impact on the security of our citizens. Our adversaries and authoritarian rivals use not only military force, but also a wide range of tools aimed at weakening our democracies. Only recently have we realized how powerful these tools can become, such as hybrid threats, cyberattacks, outside interference or election manipulation, and disinformation campaigns. While the European Union and NATO are not the same, their skills and knowledge can complement each other in addressing these challenges. We need to strike the right balance between ambition and realism; serious steps are being taken by addressing the fragmentation of European defence industries, investing in interoperability, conducting common threat analysis and expanding civilian and military missions. Let me conclude by saying that it is of the utmost importance that this Parliament demonstrates that we are serious about European and transatlantic defence. Those who oppose this cooperation and the efforts of the European Union to strengthen its defensive capacity are participating in the game of Russia and China: have a weak and divided Europe. Strengthening the strategic alliance between the European Union and the Atlantic Alliance is essential to address common threats and make the European Union a stronger global actor and partner.