Roberta Pinotti, born in Genoa in 1961, assumed the presidency of the Teatro Nazionale di Genova a few months ago—an institution founded in 1951 at a time when Italy, like half of Europe, was attempting to rebuild its cultural life following World War Second. Pinotti, currently the president of the Teatro Nazionale di Genova, noted that European capitals built an idealized version of Kremlin policy rather than recognizing an inflection point in Moscow’s imperial ambitions.
Miscalculating the Kremlin in 2014
Reflecting on her tenure at the Italian defense ministry during the 2014 crisis, Pinotti recalled a NATO summit where then-Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko detailed the urgency of the situation in Crimea with deep drama. According to Pinotti, the European response fell short because leaders minimized the severity of the action. She pointed to a collective failure to connect the 2014 intervention in Ukraine, Georgia, and Vladimir Putin’s 2007 Munich Security Conference speech as a continuous sequence signaling Russia’s intent to use military force to restore its perceived historical greatness.
Economic Vulnerability and the Will to Power
When Russian forces launched their full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, most European chancelleries still doubted Moscow would follow through, according to Pinotti. European analysts focused heavily on Russia’s economic fragility and severe financial crises at the time, assuming the Kremlin would calculate that an invasion carried too high an economic cost. Pinotti acknowledged that Western governments failed to understand that Putin prioritized geopolitical power, domestic political survival, and a global voice over economic stability, making war a viable instrument in his calculus.
Pinotti Advocates Federal Europe to Enhance Defense Cooperation
Pinotti praised European nations for maintaining unity on sanctions and military assistance to Kyiv despite logistical slowdowns stemming from decades of unpreparedness for open warfare on the continent. To counter these pressures and survive increasing global volatility, Pinotti advocated for advancing toward a federal Europe that guarantees enhanced cooperation on defense and foreign policy.
Pinotti Links Political Career to Theater and Arts
Discussing the connection between her past political career and her current role in the arts, Pinotti noted that she spent twenty years dedicated to education and culture and holds a degree in literature with a thesis on theater. She mentioned that this year the Teatro Nazionale di Genova inaugurated its season with the play Orlando furioso
, directed by Davide Livermore, which serves as a reflection on the madness toward which the world is heading.
Worth a look
