Speech by Commissioner Lahbib at the Resilient Europe Conference

When you arrived today, I hope you looked up at the roof of this palace. Four stone statues stand along the top. They represent the four elements: fire, water, air, and earth.

This palace was built three hundred years ago for Count Kaiserstein, the military commander of Prague. His job was to keep this city safe, and on his roof he placed the forces that no army could ever command.

Today, those four statues read like a risk assessment. Fire, in the forests of Bohemian Switzerland. Water, in the rivers that burst their banks two years ago. Air, where drones now threaten our airports. And earth, our continent, warming faster than any other.

Keeping a city safe now takes far more than one commander. It takes firefighters, rescuers, doctors, mayors, and volunteers. It takes people like you.

You remember September 2024. Rivers flooded across Czechia. Thousands of people had to leave their homes. Many of you worked around the clock. You know from experience: when the water starts rising, it is too late to start preparing. That is why we are here today to make sure Europe is ready before the next alarm sounds.

This is one of Europe's most urgent priorities, and it has been at the heart of my work since my first day as Commissioner. 

Europe faces growing threats on every front. Floods and wildfires, war on our borders, hybrid and cyber-attacks, sabotage, health emergencies, and who knows what Artificial Intelligence will bring.

One crisis can quickly jump across sectors. A cyberattack can bring down a hospital. A flood can cut off electricity and drinking water. Last year in Spain and Portugal, the power went out for millions of people. Trains stopped and hospitals switched to backup generators.

 Conflicts are spreading and instability in Europe's neighbourhood is growing. Take the Middle East. That war has devastated communities and driven millions from their homes, and the shockwaves reach every European kitchen, through higher food and energy prices.