Address by the President of the Republic, Sergio Mattarella, at the meeting of the ECB Executive Board

Madam President of the European Central Bank,

Mister Governor of the Bank of Italy,

Messrs. Members of the Executive Board,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I am happy to be here with you this evening and to be able to meet with you in this beautiful city, a centre of arts and science and an essential part of our European history.

The Euro – together with the European Central Bank that fosters its stability – is one of the tangible and advanced symbols of our continent’s integration process that began almost seventy years ago with the Treaty of Rome.

The transition to the single currency more than twenty-five years ago represented an important and decisive step forward, the fruit of courage and vision.

Today there can be no doubt that said courage and vision have been rewarded. The citizens of the European Countries that joined the Euro are well aware of this, having seen the purchasing power of their incomes and savings protected. The same is perceived by their respective economies, being able to count on a reliable currency that is recognized at international level.

The ECB has successfully fulfilled its mandate, also in difficult moments, and has operated with independence, sense of responsibility and acknowledged integrity, at the service of European citizens.

I would like to express my deep appreciation to you, President Lagarde, and to all the members of the Executive Board, for the great competence and determination with which, in these last few years, you have tackled extraordinarily complex challenges: the pandemic, the energy shock in the wake of Russia’s reckless aggression againstUkraine, and the sudden surge in inflation, which has now abated.

These are the achievements of an Institution that has been able to consolidate over time, attracting talents from all over Europe – an important example of the potential underlying the joint commitment of people from different backgrounds and cultures towards the achievement of a common goal.

The world has deeply changed from when the ECB became operational in 1998, as the successor ofthe European Monetary Institute.

Today we are facing transformations that would have been unthinkable thirty years ago: the emergence of new global powers, the conflicts, the geopolitical tensions and – more recently – the commercial disputes that are shaking the international order, as well as the attempt to undermine the soundness of the valuable multilateral system patiently designed and consolidated in the aftermath of the second World War that has enabled us to tackle and oftentimes solve numerous crises. This system needs to be redesigned to adjust to the changed conditions that have developed in the world over these past eighty years but must be absolutely upheld.

Stemming from this is a widespread sense of uncertainty and even of insecurity, also in Western Countries, which could lead to taking wrong decisions and putting at risk values that we considered to be acquired.

Europe has taken important steps forward in these past few years, but they now seem to be insufficient in view of the scope of ongoing changes.

Fitting, for example, is the definition given by one of my eminent predecessors, Carlo Azeglio Ciampi,when speaking of the Union’s “lameness”: the evident asymmetry between the single currency and the continuing fragmentation in economic and tax policies.

The ECB – unique among large central banks – operates in a context governed by twenty different States – soon to be twenty-one – with a matching number of budget policies, not entirely harmonized legislations, and financial markets that continue to be confined within national boundaries.

The Union continues to have difficulty in finding a common denominator in strategic matters such as foreign and defence policies, as well as in investingin infrastructure and innovation.

The lack of adequate common actions weakens all the players: it translates into a lower capacity to respond to the needs of citizens and a progressive loss of international relevance.

We cannot allow this to happen.

Europe has available extraordinary human resources and materials, greatly sizable and high-quality. It has what it takes to continue to be a key player and competitive, thus guaranteeing a future of wellbeing to its citizens.

It has developed social welfare systems that provide medical care and health services, andprotecting people from economic downturns. It remains the bulwark of democracy, fundamental freedoms and of the rule of law; and it has the duty to contribute to developing an international order based on peace and human dignity.

We should not overlook the fact that the Union is still working in this direction by developing and expanding a commercial free exchange network across large areas of the world, spanning from North America to Latin America and Asia, thus giving rise to common interests and shared objectives which, as history taught us, are the soundest basis for peace.

We must recover the momentum and courage that drove the major institutional changes throughout the European integration process up to the adoption of the single currency.

We urgently need to speed up the process.

The instruments are well known to us, and they were mentioned by President Lagarde, and also by Giovanni de’ Medici and Mr. Machiavelli in the imaginary dialogue that you enacted. We must implement them with determination and within a set timeframe, in order to boost the continent’s political and economic integration and thus enable its Member Countries to grow again and look at the future with renewed confidence in their capacity to be key players on the international scene.

Monetary policy for price stability falls within your scope of competence, given your understanding of the complexity of the context to which it applies.

It is no coincidence that you included in your mission making the Eurosystem take into full consideration the implications of climate change and the energy transition in developing its strategies.

These are compelling issues.

From your vantage point, you are fully aware of the need to take resolute and timely action and to make sure that this awareness is disseminated among governments, institutions and public opinions.

Allow me to express my conviction that you will continue to do so, aware of how your action can contribute to the European cause and to the establishment of a more equitable and sustainable international order.

Thank you and I wish you all possible success.