Mattarella on the Iran war warns about autocracy rising

When democracy is in danger, the West cannot afford to stand by and watch. The words of the President of the Republic, Sergio Mattarella, about the risks currently facing democracy sound like a warning that goes far beyond Italy’s borders. The head of state recalled the value of the international order that emerged after the Second World War and is founded on the rule of law, warning that this balance is now under increasing pressure and subject to attempts at dismantling.

It is a call that deserves to be heard not only in Europe but throughout the Western world. When the architecture of international rules is called into question, the defense of democracy cannot be limited to statements of principle: it requires responsibility, strong alliances, and, in some cases, even the willingness to intervene.

The system of international law that many people today take for granted is the result of the tragedies of the twentieth century. After the war, Western democracies—largely led by the United States—built institutions and rules designed to prevent the world from falling back into the anarchy of power politics. This system has ensured decades of relative stability, economic growth, and the expansion of civil rights. But, as Mattarella reminded us, these achievements are not irreversible: they can be eroded if the international community chooses not to defend them.

In contemporary public debate there is often a temptation to imagine that peace can be preserved simply by avoiding any form of intervention. It is an understandable vision, but historically a fragile one. Experience shows that the international order endures only when someone is willing to enforce the rules. Over the past seventy years, this role has largely been played by the United States and by the democratic alliances built around it.

This does not mean that every intervention has been perfect or free of mistakes. But it does mean recognizing that, without an actor willing to concretely defend common rules, the risk is a return to a world dominated solely by force.

The message of the President of the Republic also invites Europe not to consider democracy an automatic inheritance. Political freedom, the rule of law, and international security are goods that must be continuously sustained. In this framework, cooperation with the United States is not simply a geopolitical choice: it is an essential component in the defense of the democratic order. When rules are violated and democracies are threatened, passivity can become a form of unintended complicity.

Mattarella’s message is not merely an institutional speech. It is a historical reminder: democracy does not survive on inertia. If we truly want to preserve the international system that emerged after the war, built on law, alliances, and political freedoms, we must accept that defending it entails concrete responsibilities, even when they are difficult. Because the real alternative is not between intervention and absolute peace, but between an international order defended by democracies and a world in which the law of the strongest prevails.

Klevis Gjoka