Nadia Calviño, EIB President: Can Europe compete?

“We put the money where Europe's priorities are. Many people may think defence is about tanks. No, defence is also about energy security. It is about social cohesion and territorial cohesion. That's the European brand. So we need to act in all these areas in order to ensure peace, security, stability on our continent.”

Peter Macjob speaks to Nadia Calviño, President of the European Investment Bank, about Europe’s shifting priorities, and the growing urgency around defence and security.

With wars, energy shocks and tariffs reshaping the global economy, Europe is being forced to rethink its position in a changing world.

The EIB is the EU’s lending arm, mobilising billions of euros to finance infrastructure, energy and technology projects across Europe and the developing world. Calviño, a former Spanish finance minister, took on the role in 2024 at a time of war in Ukraine, rising geopolitical tensions and growing strain on global trade.

The Interview brings you conversations with people shaping our world, from all over the world. The best interviews from the BBC, including episodes with UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres and free speech campaigner Maria Ressa. You can listen on the BBC World Service on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 0800 GMT. Or you can listen to The Interview as a podcast, out three times a week on BBC Sounds or wherever you get your podcasts.

Presenter: Peter Macjob
Producers: Osman Iqbal and Lucy Sheppard
Editor: Justine Lang and Damon Rose

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(Image: Nadia Calviño Credit: Krisztian Bocsi/Bloomberg via Getty Images)