In a world increasingly defined by uncertainty, the European Union’s ability to prepare, protect, and respond to natural disasters and hybrid threats has become a cornerstone of its legitimacy. Hadja Lahbib’s approach is guided by a deeply liberal philosophy: security must start with people and serve them.
Behind the headlines is a European Commissioner who speaks with conviction, shaped by years in conflict zones as a journalist and now leading a portfolio that touches every corner of European life.
This interview was originally published in ALDE Party's Liberal Bulletin in June 2025. Click here to read the full publication.
Q: Commissioner Lahbib, your role brings together equality, crisis preparedness and humanitarian aid, three areas that might seem unrelated at first glance. How do they reinforce each other, and why is it so important to address them together at the European level?
HL: I tried to imagine my portfolio physically and I think it would make a great stool, because it has three legs – and what they have in common is people, human beings. In a crisis, the first victims are often the most vulnerable and disadvantaged. And in the case of sudden events such as environmental disasters, wars and terrorist attacks, the first victims are often women, children and the elderly. For me, my portfolio embodies European values transformed into action: it’s all about how to build a European Union that listens, protects, promotes solidarity and has a genuine vision for society.
Q: We often talk about security in military terms, but your approach seems to start with people: protecting rights, ensuring dignity, responding to need. How has the meaning of “security” evolved today, and what does it mean to you in a European sense?
HL: Security is at the heart of the EU’s strategy precisely to respond to our citizens’ current needs. We are experiencing an increasing number of wars, climate disasters, floods, wildfires, an energy crisis and power cuts. The EU is helping to build resilience in each individual, and at the heart of my mission is to build a Preparedness Union Strategy that enables everyone to know how to respond to these crises. This consists of 30 actions designed to coordinate a united civilian response, building a society where everyone has responsibility, empathy and attention for the most vulnerable, to ensure that we are able to face these daily upheavals together, leaving nobody behind.
These actions cover all areas of responsibility, and the first one responsible is yourself. For example, let's take something that we can all do very easily: what do we need to get through 72 hours of a power outage? Water, a torch, a radio, cash... You have to take your own personal circumstances into account, such as whether you use the internet or need to take medication. But you should always keep in touch with your neighbours, look out for your grandmother, your little girl who may have a disability, your mother who is a bit more fragile. So this is what it's all about: resilience at all levels of society.
Q: You come from a liberal political family where freedom and equality are core values. But in today’s unpredictable and fast-changing world, how can these values become a source of strength and resilience for Europe’s future?
HL: As a liberal, freedom is ingrained in me because it means responsibility. Anyone who takes freedom into their own hands, for example by leaving their parents' home for the first time, suddenly feels the weight of responsibility on their shoulders. I want to turn what is written in our treaties into everyday reality for our citizens: women, men, LGBTIQ+ communities, and the most discriminated groups such as Roma people and people with disabilities. Unfortunately for them, equality is still far from their everyday reality. It will be my job over the next years to implement all the directives which were adopted during the previous term and must now be turned into reality. Because without freedom, there can be no equality.
Q: You’ve spent time in some of the world’s most fragile and crisis-hit regions, witnessing human suffering up close. What has been your biggest wake-up call in these months as Commissioner?
HL: The hardest moments are also the ones that touch you and mark you for life. For me, these are definitely my visits to refugee camps, such as the Zarqa camp in Jordan. There is no activity in these camps: no theatre, cinema, library, spiritual culture, nothing to open minds or prepare children for the future. So you ask yourself: “What will become of them?”. And they look you in the eyes and tell you: “It's all good, we eat, we're not dying anymore, we're not being killed anymore”.
My primary concern is to find ways to help them more effectively, because we now have the terrible privilege of becoming leaders in humanitarian aid following the withdrawal of the United States. This is an opportunity to show that the EU is there, a united, loyal, committed and reliable partner for the values of solidarity and equality. So, I have a lot of meetings on the field with our partnering NGOs to see how we can work more effectively to localise our efforts, create a circular economy, involve more local NGOs and host communities. I am sure that we can turn these crises into a tremendous opportunity to work on greater resilience, both for communities that must flee and for those who are hosting.
Q: You’ve stepped into this role at a moment when European citizens are asking tough questions about whether the EU can still deliver. If you have one message to share, what would you want them to hear loud and clear?
HL: Europe is a project for peace and prosperity, and for that we need security. Because when we’re secure, we're free and we're there to build a more egalitarian society where everyone is free to make their own choices: that is what the EU is all about. It has proven this in the past, it will prove it in the future, and it proves it every day. Believe in yourselves, dare to take risks, dare to exercise all your freedoms, and go for it. Do not close any doors for yourselves: you are your own best asset.