Driving Change: EL Executive Board Charts the Way Forward

Meeting of the EL Executive Board, October 25, ONLINE

Opening remarks by Walter Baier, President of the European Left

I. The crisis of Europe’s model

The Draghi Report last year contained an extraordinary confession: Europe’s industrial policy has failed. Let’s say it clearly — neoliberalism has failed. Austerity has eroded our public services — health, education, infrastructure — and together with the cult of shareholder value, it has left Europe behind the U.S. and China in mobility, digitalization, semiconductors, and clean tech. Draghi calls for 800 billion euros of investment — five percent of Europe’s GDP — much of it for the defense industry. But a billion in weapons creates fewer jobs than a billion in hospitals or schools. And where will the money come from? From the markets — through debt — at high interest.

So what’s the message? Austerity for the people — Keynesianism for weapons. We must spend more intelligently and we must fund more intelligently. We must invest in people — our greatest productive force. In a just transition — digital, green, and socially just. We must raise funds by taxing wealth and financial profits — and free our budgets from the grip of the markets.

To do so, we must reform EU institutions. The European Central Bank and the European Investment Bank must become engines of social and ecological transformation. Zero-interest loans — for hospitals, housing, renewables. For life. For the planet. Europe must choose: austerity or transformation. Follow the markets — or lead its people. That is the choice before us.

II. Peace and solidarity

Comrades, Anti-imperialism and solidarity are the foundation of our values. Solidarity with Cuba, with progressive Latin America, with the Kurdish liberation movement, with the Sahrawi people, and with Palestine — and with the Israeli peace movement.

That is why we demand:

• End the genocide and ethnic cleansing,
• Sanction the Israeli government and suspend the EU–Israel Agreement,
• Recognize the State of Palestine as part of a two-state solution,
• Release Mustafa Barghouti.

We condemned the Hamas massacre of 7 October — because indiscriminate terror is not resistance. Anti-imperialism always meant and means today liberation — social, democratic, feminist. Religious fundamentalists who reject these values are not allies — but opponents.

The world is changing. The shift to a multipolar order is a fact. Two years ago, the BRICS economies overtook the G7. But let’s be clear: the BRICS are not automatically “antiimperialist” — they include reactionary states like Iran and Saudi Arabia. And Russia still violates international law by continuing its war against Ukraine. At the summit in Anchorage Trump was right about one thing: this war could have ended long ago. At Istanbul, both sides had agreed on principles for peace. Since then, Putin and Zelensky have chosen victory over peace — and Europe has chosen complicity over reason. An absurd policy: Europe pays the bills, bears the risks, yet marches to Washington’s drumbeat. Rearmament. Conscription in Germany. In Denmark even for women. Militarization of politics across the board.

Listen to Ursula von der Leyen, and it sounds like war has already begun. A single spark could ignite catastrophe. That is why peace must stand at the center of our agenda. We must have the courage to oppose warmongering and chauvinism. The arms race is not only a waste of billions — it is a threat to the planet itself.

The struggle for peace is a struggle for humanity. We need a new system of common security — one that includes all states and respects all needs. Let’s recall that peace is not made with friends — it is made with adversaries. Our comrades in the cluster “Peace and Security” call this Helsinki 2.0. Only a Europe that builds peace through cooperation can take its destiny into its own hands. U.S. nuclear weapons must be withdrawn from Europe. We want a nuclear-free continent. Neutrality and non-alignment can become models — for Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, Serbia — for a Europe that leads, not follows. That disarms, not arms. That seeks cooperation with the global South rather than dominating it.

This is the decision facing Europe. And we must mobilize people find their voice in it.

III. The fight of our time

Comrades, the fight against the radical right is not a side issue — it is the struggle of our time. This is more than a shift in rhetoric — it is an assault on democracy itself. Trump showed us what it looks like: intimidation, distortion, flirtation with coups. Are we witnessing the end of liberal democracy — in the U.S., in Europe, worldwide? Are we sliding toward fascisation? These are not theoretical questions — they are strategic ones for our movement. Across Europe, the far right advances. In the Czech Republic, ANO — a member of Patriots for Europe — has won the election and is taking power. Right-wing extremists now hold a third of EU governments, five prime ministerships, two commissioners, and a quarter of seats in the European Parliament. France, Germany, Austria — all face the same threat. This is not coincidence — it is a wave. A perfect storm is gathering. That is why the next ¡No Pasarán! Conference is so vital — to analyze, strategize, and unite.

The far right now calls itself “Patriots for Europe.” But what kind of Europe do these “patriots” want? What is their European agenda? What’s their strategy in the institutions. In order to denounce it we must analyze and understand it. The fight against the far right is not only moral or cultural — it is social. Despair, inequality, and insecurity — these are the seeds from which fascism grows. And liberals feed it — while using the far right to justify their own failed policies. That’s why we must not become the left wing of the establishment.

We are the Left that defends the working class — The Left that fights for peace, justice, and the planet. The Left that stands against fascisation. This demands consistency, intelligence, flexibility — and above all, unity. Unity in action! That must be the message of our congress in April.

Thank you.