Brief | The State of the European Union
Inside Ursula von der Leyen's most important speech of the year
At 9:00 AM on September 16th, President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen delivered the State of the European Union Address 2026. Gathering lawmakers of the entire European Union at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, the address marks the second year in office for von der Leyen’s second Commission, reflecting on recent events in Europe and setting out current policy priorities for the coming year.
The State of the European Union (SOTEU) address was first introduced as a yearly gathering in 2010 by then-President of the European Commission José Manuel Barroso. This followed the Lisbon Treaty’s entry into force, and represented one of its core purposes of increasing the Commission’s accountability to the European Parliament (EP).
It can be compared to the State of the Union address delivered yearly by US Presidents, with both being delivered by the head of the executive and serving similar purposes. However, the SOTEU is notably explicitly addressed to the legislature rather than to the member states.
The event was opened by President of the European Parliament Roberta Metsola, followed by von der Leyen’s speech. Leaders of the political parties represented in the EP then gave their own responses to the address.
The speech was attended by Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) and the College of Commissioners, as well as hosting Prime Minister of Canada Mark Carney as a special guest of honor.
A delegation of Aleph Analisi-Strategiche was honored to attend a live viewing of the address at the Representation of the European Commission in Milan at the famous Palazzo delle Stelline, and to engage with academic and political stakeholders to discuss the policies laid out in the speech.
“An Openly Hostile World”
The EU’s relationship with its allies and adversaries was a clearly defined focus of the address, with the president stating that “as old assumptions and relationships have frayed, we are now dealing with an openly hostile world.”
Perhaps the biggest piece of news from the speech was a significant evolution in the relationship between the EU and Canada. The aforementioned presence of Mark Carney was not without reason; Canada has been invited to become the first “Associate Member” of the European Union. Formally, this is set to mean an expansion of the current EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) into a broader “Alliance for the Future”. Full EU membership is off the table, as Canada is not a European state, but the announcement reflects a clear repositioning of EU foreign policy.
The threat posed from Russia was an especially highlighted topic. The speech referred directly to drone incidents in the Nordics and Baltics, a recent flare attack against a Danish helicopter by a Russian frigate, and particularly the Leipzig drone attacks in August as a continued cause for concern. Von der Leyen also underlined the EU’s unwavering support for Ukraine, pledging that the “strongest-ever support” will come in the winter. A new “Freya” project was also announced to develop a joint EU-Ukraine modular missile defence system in an effort to combine Ukrainian battlefield experience with European technological and industrial capability. Emphasis was also placed on the continued role of sanctions, stressing the importance of closing current sanction circumvention loopholes to prioritise enforcing current sanctions over introducing new ones.
The intensified relationship between the EU and the US was not ignored. Von der Leyen explicitly referred to EU member states’ response to President Trump’s continued threats against Greenland as an important example of Europe’s nations standing up for one another. The timing of Canada’s new status as Associate Member is not coincidental either: the ongoing tariff war between Canada and the US, its largest trading partner, has created a clear interest for both Canada and the EU to develop closer bonds.
The Competitive Edge:
The Commission’s priorities for the EU’s economic initiatives were, naturally, a significant point of discussion in the address. Von der Leyen directly referred to the Draghi and Letta reports as the intellectual basis for single market reform. The president celebrated the One Europe, One Market Roadmap political agreement, setting the goal for the overhaul of the Single Market to be completed by the end of 2027.
The most prevalent industrial focus was on the energy sector, both as a matter of climate policy as well as security and foreign relations. Von der Leyen pointed to the reliance on Russian gas and closure of the Strait of Hormuz as evidence of a need to “double down” on affordable green energy produced within the union. “Technologically neutral. But they must give us independence”. The address defined an explicit goal to double the share of electricity by 2040 and to prioritise building and expanding electrical grids.
Various EU economic initiatives which target specific sectors or categories were also announced. A particular focus was placed on Small-and-Medium Enterprises, specifically to cut down on administrative burdens and red tape through 12 omnibus proposals to save roughly €17 billion per year. A new Banking Package to tackle fragmentation in the financial markets and a new European Corporation on Critical Raw Materials to procure and stockpile materials for chips and EVs were both discussed as well.
Von der Leyen also emphasised the €1 billion per day trade deficit with China as another example of costly dependency. She raised the point that the EU is dependent on China for more than 80% of many critical raw materials, and more than 90% for some Rare Earth Elements. The address reaffirmed the Commission’s intention to rebalance its trade relationship with China, again through the lens of greater self-sufficiency and European solutions.
“The Summer of Truth” and a European Approach to Migration
The summer months have not been uneventful for the European Union, with two of the most widely discussed happenings being climate change related extreme weather conditions and the mass wave of migrants entering the Spanish territory of Ceuta.
The extreme heat across the continent saw real, on-the-ground effects felt by the citizens of Europe. 660,000 hectares of land burned, 12 million tonnes of crops were lost, and more than 35,000 additional heatwave deaths were observed. The Commission President said it bluntly: “These were the hottest summer months ever – but probably the coolest of the years to come”. Family members of the deceased Danish pilot Rune Kyndal, who was killed while fighting wildfires in Greece, were invited to attend the address, and were given a standing ovation by MEPs.
Several initiatives were announced as part of the Commission’s climate policy. This included a new Framework for Climate Resilience, set to identify the most vulnerable parts of the continent and assess their climate risks. The address clearly defined climate policy as something Europe should develop together through the EU; a European Heatwave Plan, a European Water Initiative and European Firefighting Fleet were also among the announcements.
This idea of European solutions extended to migration as well. The incident at Ceuta was explicitly invoked, with von der Leyen saying that "Ceuta's border is a European border... Ceuta is Spain. Ceuta is Europe". Her thesis was clear: “the only solution is a European solution”. The president called for full implementation of the Pact on Migration and Asylum, stating that the EU is on the right path with a 55% reduction in illegal arrivals over the past two years.
Further policy on migration included a new European Emergency Response Framework for mass-movement migration scenarios, particularly to counter weaponised migration. A new sanctions scheme to target traffickers and smugglers, and a new Mediterranean Youth Skills and Jobs initiative, were also announced.
A Guardrail Framework for AI and Social Media
Another important theme of the 2026 address was the focus on tech regulation and children' s rights, in large part as to how the two directly reinforce one another.
One of the biggest announcements came in the form of an EU Kids Act, which sets out to bar the use of social media for children below the age of 13, and to ban personal/independent accounts for those below 15 years old. Protection extends to those between the ages of 15-18 with the creation of mandatory “safe design” obligations platforms have to abide by. In practice, this means a reversal of the burden of proof; platforms must now prove safety as opposed to regulators having to prove harm.
A Digital Fairness Act has also been proposed to be legislated in Autumn. This policy would punish purposefully addictive designs which harm all users, not just minors. Von der Leyen discussed this in a particularly emotional part of the address, sharing the story of a 14 year old Belgian girl who took her own life exactly one month ago as a victim of online bullying.
Comments