Welcome statement by Andrius Kubilius at the opening of the German-Baltic Conference 2025 in Riga

On 16 October, the annual German-Baltic Conference was officially opened at the Latvian National History Museum in Riga, with the central theme being ‘Rethinking Security Through Youth’.

A particular highlight of the opening ceremony was the welcome statement by Andrius Kubilius, Commissioner for Defence and Space of the EU, who emphasised the strength of European defence and the importance of young people as future decision-makers:

Dear Youth Ambassadors,

Andrius Kubilius

The current political and security situation around us requires serious rethinking of how we envision our European security architecture in the future. To be ready to defend peace and itself, Europe is taking significant steps to strengthen its own security.

This afternoon, the European Commission will present the Defence Readiness Roadmap 2030. We are building on the unprecedented decisions we took during this year, which created a ‘big bang’ in defence spending and legal, industrial and political opportunities to boost defence production. Our roadmap creates conditions for clear plans, timetables, deliverables and indicators and a clear reporting and monitoring system, to ramp up procurement and production, bring permanent defence innovation, build European defence flagship projects and produce with, in and for Ukraine. Our roadmap shows all the major milestones to achieve Defence Readiness by 2030, so we can deter Russian aggression, prevent war and preserve peace. Our policy is production, our purpose is peace.

But it’s not enough to have only material defence readiness. We must also have institutional defence readiness. Now the United States focuses more and more on the Indo Pacific,

Europe needs to take responsibility for its own defence. As President von der Leyen said: This must be Europe’s Independence moment. It’s time to build a European Defence Union.

A new security architecture for Europe, to strengthen the European part of NATO, involving also Ukraine, which has unique battle tested experience on the democratic side of the European continent. With also the United Kingdom and Norway on board, to make us much stronger.

We need to build also our Political defence readiness - it’s no use having enough modern weapons, if we do not have the political will to fight, to use those weapons to defend ourselves.

Putin is using all possible means of hybrid warfare to diminish our political defence readiness. We need to learn to strengthen our political will, to defend ourselves and deter hybrid provocations.

In this regard, the theme of this year’s German-Baltic Conference – Rethinking Security Through Youth – is very relevant.

Achieving material defence readiness and creating institutional and political defence readiness require the ideas, determination, and will not only of current but also future leaders of Europe.

Therefore, by wishing you fruitful discussions today, I also invite you to reflect on the best ways to build defence readiness in order to prevent war and preserve peace.

— Andrius Kubilius, welcome statement on the occasion of the German-Baltic Conference 2025