Borrell and the war propaganda push in Spain's Vocento

Borrell and the war propaganda push in Spain's Vocento

Josep Borrell, the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, delivered a speech in the European Parliament that former minister and former MEP Ramón Jáuregui described as "Churchillian" and which, in his words, "managed to stir the conscience of a Europe that has reacted in the best possible way." In it, Borrell declared: "This is the birth certificate of geopolitical Europe. It is time for Europeans to take on their responsibilities to confront reckless adversaries. The return of tragedy, far from frightening us, should galvanise us. No one can look the other way." The piece, published in outlets such as El Diario Montañés and El Correo, has sparked intense backlash in political analysis forums, where the use of grandiloquent language to justify European rearmament and unconditional support for Ukraine is being denounced.

The speech Vocento turned into epic

Vocento's coverage presents Borrell's speech as a turning point: "The Europe of Defence is born. The dream becomes reality. Bad news for our enemies." The text stresses the "burden of epic that European summits always carry" and quotes Margaritis Schinas, Vice-President of the European Commission, who claims that "little by little something we have never had in Europe is being created: a European public opinion, which is unconditionally supporting both Ukraine and our joint action." However, the claim of unanimous public opinion clashes with the reality of polls showing growing divisions.

The contradiction of unanimity

The text itself acknowledges the existence of "populisms and extremisms" which, according to the author, "it is good that they exist so we can assert ourselves and extol our values in order to corner them." In other words, dissent is admitted, but the dissenter is dismissed. This paradox —invoking a unanimous public opinion while stigmatising those who disagree— has been one of the most criticised points. At its heart lies the question: who defines this European public opinion? The media that proclaim it?

The real cost: energy dependence and debt

Beyond the narrative, the numbers. The EU has set out to cut its dependence on Russian gas by two thirds by the end of the year, according to Schinas, by diversifying towards the United States, Qatar and Norway. The text presents this as an achievement but omits the cost: US liquefied gas is more expensive and has a larger carbon footprint. Moreover, the financing of aid to Ukraine and the Next Generation funds will be done through "debt mutualisation", a broken taboo which, according to Arancha González Laya, former Foreign Affairs Minister, means "the glass can be seen as half full again." Translation: more public debt, to be paid by taxpayers.

The elbichito passport and the European way of life

Borrell's speech and Vocento's article come in a context that is, to say the least, striking: the EU is pushing the so-called elbichito passport —which some critics call a "health passport"— and several countries, such as Italy and Greece, maintain mandatory vaccination for certain groups. While talk of "protecting the European way of life" continues, freedoms are being restricted. The irony is enormous: rights and values are invoked to be defended while coercive measures are applied.

Who pays for the party?

Vocento's article asks: "Pandemic, war, humanitarian aid... How is all this paid for?" The answer it offers is that it will be "complex." The Next Generation funds, presented as the great hope, have become the lifeboat. But money does not come from nowhere: debt is issued. The euro, meanwhile, is falling. War epic does not come free.

The public opinion that does not exist

Schinas insists there is a European public opinion that supports Ukraine "unconditionally." But Eurobarometer data show a more nuanced reality: support for sanctions on Russia varies greatly by country, and in some member states it barely exceeds 50%. Unanimity is a self-serving myth. As one commenter notes, "the EU is not a democracy; it is a technocracy that decides above the citizens' heads."

Rearmament as a business

Behind the epic rhetoric, there is a business: rising defence spending. Germany has already announced a €100 billion fund for its army. The European arms industry's shares are on the rise. Meanwhile, citizens see public services being cut to balance the books. The question is inevitable: who really benefits from this "geopolitical Europe"?

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Borrell's speech and its amplification by outlets such as Vocento exemplify the drift of a narrative that confuses the interests of the Brussels bureaucracy with those of Europeans. War epic does not fill the fridge or pay the mortgage. And while leaders talk of "manifest destiny", citizens watch, stunned and resigned, a new chapter of history they did not choose.