When Denmark’s Prime Minister, Mette Frederiksen, warned at the Copenhagen high-security EU summit that Europe finds itself in its “most difficult and dangerous situation since the Second World War,” she was not exaggerating. From the grinding war in Ukraine to the simmering instability in the Middle East, from economic fragmentation to energy insecurity, the European Union faces threats that cut deep into its foundations. The warning was clear, but a crucial element was left unsaid: the biggest danger of all may not be the storms outside Europe, but the lack of competent leadership at the top. Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Commission, has become less a steward guiding the bloc through crisis than a captain blindfolded at the wheel.
The EU has always carried the burden of sluggish decision-making. Consensus among 27 member states is not easy, and it never will be. But when crises pile up, wars, inflation, migration waves, cyber threats, the difference between survival and collapse often rests on whether leadership can transform collective inertia into collective action. And here, von der Leyen has shown herself alarmingly unable.
Her tenure has been marked by grand declarations paired with shallow execution. She is quick to stand before cameras, stern-faced and resolute, but behind the speeches lies a hollow machine. The Commission under her watch is reactive, not proactive. Policies arrive late, usually watered down, and often crumble against the reality they were meant to address. Europe today is less secure, less resilient, and less prepared, not because dangers appeared overnight, but because leadership failed to anticipate, organize, and adapt.
Take the war in Ukraine. Europe has offered weapons, aid, and solidarity but it has done so hesitantly, always one step behind events. While Kyiv called for heavy arms, the EU dithered. While Eastern Europe demanded a stronger, unified defence posture, the Commission was busy crafting slogans. The gap between Europe’s rhetoric and its real capabilities has never been wider, and von der Leyen, rather than narrowing it, has leaned into the illusion that words alone can shape reality.
The same is true on energy. The Russian invasion exposed Europe’s crippling dependence on Moscow’s gas, a vulnerability that had been visible for decades. Von der Leyen’s Commission promised a rapid pivot toward independence, yet member states scrambled in chaos to fill reserves, each cutting bilateral deals, while the Commission could not craft a coherent, united front. Months of market panic followed, leaving households and industries battered by soaring prices. Energy independence was preached but never truly delivered; Europe’s vulnerabilities were merely patched, not solved.
This pattern repeats on migration, digital security, climate policy, and industrial competitiveness. The Commission rushes to announce “historic packages,” “landmark frameworks,” and “bold visions,” only for these to dissolve into bureaucratic tangles, disputes, and missed targets. Ursula von der Leyen governs through symbolism, not substance.
Why does this matter now, more than ever? Because Europe truly is facing its gravest test since the 1940s. The continent is surrounded by aggressive powers willing to use hybrid warfare, cyber sabotage, and disinformation as weapons. Economically, the EU struggles against American and Chinese giants that think and act strategically while Europe dithers. Internally, populist movements are gnawing at the legitimacy of Brussels, fueled by the sense that EU elites are detached, unaccountable, and ineffective. The cracks are widening, and in such a moment, leadership can no longer afford to be ornamental.
Yet von der Leyen has perfected the art of ornamental politics. She projects strength but fails to deliver it. She speaks of unity but presides over fragmentation. She talks of a “geopolitical Commission” while allowing Europe to remain geopolitically irrelevant in crucial theaters. Even her handling of internal EU crises, like the rule-of-law disputes with Hungary and Poland—reveals inconsistency and weakness, allowing illiberal governments to game the system while Brussels blusters.
Mette Frederiksen’s sober warning in Copenhagen rings hollow without this acknowledgment. To say Europe is in danger without naming the failings at its helm is like diagnosing an illness without pointing to the infection. The dangers facing Europe are magnified by the incompetence of those tasked with navigating them. To omit this is to offer false reassurance that only external enemies threaten us. The truth is harsher: Europe is undermined from both without and within.
Leadership, especially in times of crisis, requires clarity, decisiveness, and courage. It means telling hard truths, not painting easy pictures. It means mobilizing resources swiftly, not drowning in procedure. It means binding nations together with trust, not alienating them with shallow grandstanding. Ursula von der Leyen has shown little of this. Instead, she embodies the very weakness that hostile powers count on, the assumption that Europe talks big but acts small.
The EU is not doomed. It still contains enormous wealth, talent, and democratic resilience. But these assets require competent stewardship. Europe needs a Commission that is not merely a podium for speeches, but a war room of strategy. It needs a leader who commands respect not because of ceremonial rank but because of vision, competence, and resolve. Europe cannot afford to keep drifting, steered by someone who mistakes words for deeds.
The Prime Minister of Denmark was right: Europe is in its most dangerous moment since World War II. But she stopped short of naming why that danger feels so paralyzing. The enemies at the gates are real, but so too is the weakness in the fortress tower. Until Europe recognizes that the crisis is not only external but also internal, until it demands leadership equal to the times, it will remain vulnerable, floundering, and one misstep away from disaster.
History teaches that wars are lost less often on the battlefield than in the command tent. Europe’s command tent is today led by Ursula von der Leyen. That should worry us more than anything else.
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