President's speech at Franz Josef Strauss Prize ceremony

 

Dear Minister President Söder,

President Aigner – thank you for your warm words,

Chairman Ferber,

Distinguished hosts,

Dear guests,

It is a great honor to receive the Franz Josef Strauss Prize here in Munich, from a foundation that has long stood for democracy, freedom, and a united Europe.

This award bears the name of a leader who believed that Europe must never take peace for granted—and that our values must be defended with clarity and courage. Today, that belief could not be more relevant.

It is with profound gratitude that I accept this recognition on behalf of all those in my country and in our region who stand on the frontline of a battle we did not start, but have resolutely chosen to fight—and cannot afford to lose: the battle for democracy, truth, and peace.

Democracy is under attack across the globe—not only on battlefields, but in our information space, in our institutions, and increasingly, in our minds.

Today’s adversaries are using both ancient tactics and emerging tools to erode trust, polarize societies, and destabilize democracies.

We see it clearly in the war Russia has launched against our neighbour, Ukraine. And make no mistake—this war began not with tanks, but long before, with narratives.

Narratives designed to justify aggression. To deny Ukraine’s right to exist. To paint democracies as weak and divided.

These falsehoods were seeded over years—through propaganda, through distortion, through fear—long before the first missile fell on Ukrainian soil.

They were meant to soften resistance, fracture societies, and create confusion in the very countries now called to act. This war reminds us that before any physical attack, there is a war of words, of stories, of perceptions—and that battle must be fought just as seriously.

Yet for too long, these narratives were underestimated. We saw the warning signs, but we hoped diplomacy would be enough. We wanted peace—but peace without means for effective defense only invited aggression.

In the first two years of the invasion, the international response was often too cautious. Hesitant. I would even say, lacking courage.

The costs of inaction then are the heavy price we pay now. And if we continue to hesitate—if we do not fully grasp the scale of the threat—we risk seeing this danger grow beyond the continent.

Russia’s war on Ukraine is no longer a regional conflict. This is a global turning point. The longer the war drags on, the more it fuels a laboratory of new tactics—drones, sabotage, hybrid warfare—that any actor, anywhere in the world, can now replicate.

This war has already triggered a revolution in military affairs—with consequences that reach far beyond Europe, affecting security thinking and strategic planning across the globe.

Ignore Ukraine, and we invite a world where aggression pays and rules mean nothing.

This is why Ukraine must receive not only our admiration, but our full support.

Military, financial, political. More of it and faster.

Every day they resist, they protect the rest of us.

Every step they take toward peace is also a step toward a safer, freer Europe.

Nowhere is this more visible than in my country, Moldova.

We share a 1,200-kilometer border with Ukraine—the longest of any European country. Moldova’s security, our freedom, and our peace are directly tied to Ukraine’s ability to stand its ground.

And if Ukraine falls, believe me—Russia will not stop at Moldova.

Ukraine is fighting not only for its own future, but for the security of our entire region. And we will never forget the Ukrainian soldiers who—by holding the line—have given Moldova a chance to remain at peace.

But our peace is fragile. And under constant pressure.

Russia is working to destabilize our democracy—not only to undermine our European path, but also to weaken Ukraine from the western flank. It has discovered that hybrid warfare can, in some cases, be more effective than boots on the ground.

We saw this clearly during last year’s presidential elections and the referendum to anchor EU accession in our Constitution. Just to give you an example: a Russian bank opened over 138,000 accounts in an attempt to sway election results through payments to voters.

Even though the will of the people prevailed, and democracy held, we learned difficult lessons about the scale, sophistication, and persistence of foreign interference. Especially for a small country.

Moldova is not alone in this fight. Across the region, Russia is using hybrid tactics to shift power and eventually surround Ukraine with hostile governments.

Our next test is this September’s parliamentary elections, where we expect an even more aggressive manipulation campaign.

Proxies are being funded through crypto networks. Russian strategists are trying to stretch our institutions to the breaking point:


	
by engineering an energy crisis earlier this year,
	
shaking the Transnistrian region’s fragile economy,
	
escalating cyber attacks beyond digital electoral infrastructure,
	
using artificial intelligence to develop more sophisticated and targeted methods of disinformation.


At the heart of it all is political manipulation: the creation of fake pro-European parties, funded with dirty money from Russia, as part of a broader effort to build a pro-Kremlin majority in Parliament.

Let me be clear: Moldova will spare no effort to defend our sovereignty, our democracy and our European path. But we can’t do it on our own.

Germany has been a vital partner to Moldova. You have supported us to strengthen institutions, fight disinformation, modernise our army and resist interference.

You have stood by us not only because we asked for support—but because you understood what is at stake.

What happens in Moldova matters. Because of our 1,200-kilometer border with Ukraine—the longest among all European countries. And because we are a test case: of whether democracies under pressure can resist, adapt, and move forward.

We are much-much grateful for your support.

This brings me to Europe. And to what kind of European Union we want to build together.

If we want peace to last, Europe must become stronger. Economically, politically, militarily, and strategically. And it must do so fast. The world has been deteriorating faster than we ever imagined—and faster than our institutions can adapt.

Europe is no longer in peacetime. Whether it’s a cyberattack on our elections, sabotage of infrastructure, or drones crossing borders—Europe must be able to act quickly and decisively. We need fast-track procedures for defense, critical infrastructure, and institutional response. In times of danger, slowness can kill.

And yes, this will come with difficult choices. In some parts of Europe, the threat still feels distant. Some citizens wonder why we should invest in defence, in grid protection, or in cybersecurity—when schools and hospitals also need funding. But if we want to preserve our way of life, we must first protect it.

And that protection requires resources. Real, sustained, strategic investment—from member states and from the Union as a whole.

The leaders must have the courage to speak plainly: some comforts may need to be postponed, so that our freedoms can be preserved. These are difficult messages—but they are necessary. Because democracies are not sustained by comfort—they are sustained by responsibility.

Important steps are already underway. But the time has come to consolidate these efforts at the European level—to act not only as individual states, but as a united force.

Enlargement must be part of this broader strategic vision. Not as a bureaucratic exercise, but as a bold choice that extends stability, security, and shared responsibility across our continent.

Courage is no longer optional.

Courage is the price of peace.

The courage to support Ukraine and protect peace in Europe.

The courage to stand by Moldova as we resist the Kremlin's pressure.

The courage to move this Union forward—even when it’s hard.

Enlargement, too, requires courage. Not just from those who join—but from those who open the door.

I want to thank the Hanns Seidel Foundation, the very warm people of Bavaria and the people in all of Germany, for your unwavering support—and for believing that peace, democracy, and unity are worth defending.

Let us meet this moment together—with clarity, with unity, and above all—with courage.

Thank you.