The European Commission President’s address to the European Parliament

The association Sostieni Ucraina, represented by its President, Dr Mario Fontana, a member of the National Congress of Ukrainian Associations in Italy (CNAUI), together with CNAUI Secretary Olha Muliak and President Lara Levchun, took part in an event held on 10 September 2025 at the Polo Universitario della provincia di Trapani – Lungomare Dante Alighieri 2/4 – Casa Santa Erice (TP), on the theme:
“VERSO il #SOTEU2025 – Che cos’è e perché è importante” (Towards #SOTEU2025 – what it is and why it matters).

The event was organised to mark the State of the Union address, delivered each year by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to the European Parliament in plenary session.

The live broadcast from Strasbourg presented a review of the past year and the political priorities for 2026.

📌 Programme of the day:
– Live link-up with Strasbourg in the lecture hall of the Polo Universitario della provincia di Trapani and in the press room of the Municipality of Acireale.

• Link-ups with other regional Europe Direct centres and Esperienza Europa, including Europe Direct Trapani Sicilia, Siena, Chieti, Provincia di Verona, Venezia Veneto, Emilia-Romagna and Molise
• A discussion with Professors Daniele Pasquinucci (University of Siena), Giorgio Scichilone (University of Trapani) and Giuliana Laschi (University of Siena), with the University of Chieti also taking part, joined by journalists Riccardo Galatioto and Don Arturo Grasso and by media partners

Also taking part were representatives of Sicily–Malta cross-border cooperation, BELC advisers and regional media.

🎯 Aims of the initiative:
– To explain the meaning and role of the SOTEU within the European Union.
– To foster dialogue between local communities and the European institutions.
– To encourage discussion among citizens, academics and representatives of civil society.

The discussion offered a space for shared reflection, drawing on the varied experience of communities from the North, Centre and South of Italy, in a spirit of European unity.

Once the SOTEU is over, reactions will be gathered and the themes that resonated most locally will be identified. The findings will be passed on to the European Commission Representation in Italy to assess how closely the stated priorities match the real needs of communities.

Further Post-SOTEU communication activities are also planned, at the participants’ initiative.