Europe: five lessons from the war against Iran

Four months after Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu launched their joint war against Iran and Lebanon in complete disregard of international law, there remains a great deal of uncertainty as to whether hostilities in the region will come to a lasting end.

It is already clear that this venture has been catastrophic for the region, for the United States and for the world. But it has also been a disaster for Europe.

Although these events unfolded just a few kilometres from its borders, the European Union was unable either to protect itself from the effects of this war or to influence its course.

This conflict has confirmed, if confirmation were still needed, the European Union’s geopolitical insignificance and its inability to defend its values and interests. If we are not to satisfied with this situation, we must urgently learn lessons from it on the economic, military and geopolitical fronts.

On the economic front, this crisis highlights our weaknesses in the cyclical management of the European economy. The crisis caused by the war against Iran is the third major successive shock in less than ten years, following the disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and the energy crisis triggered by the invasion of Ukraine in 2022.