The new book by Sergio Fabbrini

Only 'European nationalism' can counter American nationalism

by Mario Monti

13 March 2026

3' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

3' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

An informed and aware public opinion - I am convinced of this - is a necessary condition for good public policies. If citizens in general and the ruling classes in particular have a sufficient understanding of the objectives, instruments and constraints of a certain public policy, the policymakers' decisions will find more fertile ground and are more likely to generate the desired results.

In this respect, too, I have always considered Sergio Fabbrini an exemplary intellectual. Over the years he has become the most continuous and authoritative point of reference in the field of European policies, both at the level of the European Union and the Member States, particularly Italia.

His analyses and opinions enter the minds of readers 'hot', with editorials published every Sunday in 'Il Sole 24 Ore'. Thus, rigorous in method but never concealing his value judgements, Fabbrini comments on the events and debates of the European adventure, and of Italia in Europe, as they unfold, while they are still 'stills'.

Those moments then settle down, in readers as well as in the author himself, in a corpus to be explored, on an annual basis, to extract the most relevant elements and to formulate broader evaluations and perspectives. This has been the case, for some years now, with a volume that collects and organises, in a sort of consolidated but evolving thought, the weekly contributions.

This time, after a year as incredible as 2025 (which, moreover, seems almost... calm, compared to a surreal month like January 2026), Europe and Italia are somewhat marginalised from centre stage. So much so that in this book, Tsunami Trump - American Nationalism and Europe, our continent barely makes it into the subtitle and our country does not even appear there.

Yet Europe and Italia, like relations between Italia and Europe, are primary protagonists - but mainly on the passive side, at least so far - of the Trump tsunami. Sergio Fabbrini points this out well in the introduction, not by chance entitled 'Trump and us'.

The volume is divided into three parts. Part I contains editorials from 2024, an election year in both the United States (the presidential elections, in November) and Europe (for the European Parliament, in June). If in America we see the return of Donald Trump, in Europe, already a few months earlier, there is a rise of the nationalist right in almost all member states. Vibrant nationalisms, even if they have eliminated or reduced the more radical claims against the EU in recent years ('Out of the euro', 'Out of the EU').

Part II presents the editorials of 2025, committed to interpreting the Trumpian revolution and its consequences. And to identify the dilemmas of a Europe left to itself.

Finally, Part III consists of editorials dedicated to Italia in 2024 and 2025. The author gives credit to the Italia government for having managed to act positively within the economic constraints of European interdependence, while also pursuing a consistent position of support for Ukraine. However, with the arrival of Trump, the context has changed dramatically.

In this regard, the author observes: 'Although ideologically convergent with Trump's nationalism, the Italia government had to realise that, in the new transatlantic context, its nationalism was not sufficient to guarantee the protection of Italia's interests. Only 'European nationalism' could have countered American nationalism. But this would have required a cultural and political leap that the Italian premier was neither equipped, nor willing, to make'.

Sergio Fabbrini, for his part, is certainly well equipped - one might say - to make the reader understand the nature of nationalism and the various nationalisms into which it is geopolitically articulated. In fact, less than a year ago he published a thorough but agile treatment of nationalist and sovereignist phenomena: Nazionalismo 2.0 - La sfida sovranista all'Europa integrata (Mondadori, March 2025). A complementary book to the present volume.

To disentangle oneself in the times ahead, it will be good to always have this diptych by Sergio Fabbrini at hand. A competent, lucid and balanced guide on some of the most emotive and divisive issues of our time.