(Strasbourg) A reference to Alcide De Gasperi, to the urgency of the ReArm Europe plan, and to the fact that, as far as security and defence are concerned, “the time of illusions is now over”. The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, is in Strasbourg to discuss the recent proposals on military spending with MEPs. In a firm speech, she used an expression that could have been heard during the Cold War: “We must restore deterrence” to preserve peace. Seventy years ago, Alcide de Gasperi said: “We do not just need peace among us, but to build a common defence. This is not to threaten or conquer, but to deter any attack from the outside, driven by hatred against a united Europe. This is the task of our generation”. In the early 1950s, De Gasperi was the advocate of the European Defence Community, which, however, was not implemented. Von der Leyen explained that peace “can no longer be taken for granted”; today, we must achieve “peace through strength”. We thus need economic resources, investment, the 800-billion ReArm Europe plan, support for defence production. In recent times, “we thought we were enjoying a peace dividend. But in reality, we were just running a security deficit. […] Europe is called to take greater charge of its own defence. Not in some distant future but already today. Not with incremental steps but with the courage that the situation requires”.