THE STATE OF THE EUROPEAN UNION. Reforming Europe in a time of war

71 Lessons learned from the war in Ukraine José Enrique de Ayala The illegal, illegitimate and criminal invasion of Ukraine by Russia, and the war that ensued, is the most severe infringement of international order and the greatest threat to European security since the end of World War Two, and it will doubtlessly have extremely important repercussions on the future geopolitical configuration, not only in Europe but also globally.Although the Kremlin has qualified it as a “special military operation” because there has been neither an official declaration of war nor any mobilisation in Russia, it has clearly become a medium-high intensity war, conven- tional so far, with a strong influence from new aspects such as cyber warfare and a wide use of satellite warfare and information warfare. In addition, indirect intervention from many other countries in favour of Ukraine has extended the conflict to the economic, energy and food sectors, with very serious repercussions in Europe above all, although also felt throughout much of the rest of the world. Nothing can justify or lessen the responsibility of the Russian leaders, led by President Vladimir Putin, for this unjustified attack - displaying very high levels of cru- elty - against a sovereign country whose borders have been officially recognised on several occasions. First and foremost, this action should be condemned, with no con- ditions or appeasements. However, it is a good idea to study the origins and circumstances that have led to this situation, and the mistakes made by all parties involved, at various levels, to learn lessons that will stop us falling into the same trap in the future and help us to seek a solution to this terrible war that seems to be stretching on with no sign of peace on the horizon, and that might lead to very dangerous escalations. The Geopolitics The 20th century was dramatic for Europe. Destroyed by two world wars that were above all - specifically the first - European civil wars, subsequently amplified, and suffering a third - cold - war that divided it into two opposing blocks, thereby adding dependency on the two powers within that bipolar world.The end of the cold war was a turning point, a historical milestone when anything was possible, including reconciliation and a new security order that covered the entire continent, including the Russian giant. Even before the dissolution of the War- saw Pact and the Soviet Union itself, Mikhail Gorbachev - its last president - had proposed the concept of the “Common European Home”, a security environment that would also include the USA and Canada, according to the familiar formula “from Vancouver to Vladivostok”. Gorbachev went so far as to propose the dissolution of the Warsaw pact and NATO and the creation of a new European security architecture, that would be based on the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE). Some European leaders, such as French President François Mitterrand or the Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme supported this idea, but the USA was against it, although it promised to boost the CSCE’s role - destined to become a permanent organisation in 1994 (OSCE), with a more political slant than NATO. Faced with the imminent conclusion of the Cold War, this was perhaps the greatest missed opportunity to create a common framework on the continent to avoid future tensions,