The Spanish Committee for the Pan-European Union agreed, at a meeting of its Board of Directors chaired by Carlos Uriarte Sánchez, to award the 21st Otto von Habsburg Prize, for the year 2026, to Enrico Letta. This award honors his distinguished academic and political career, his firm commitment to the European integration project, and his work toward adapting the European Union to current geopolitical challenges, as highlighted in his report *Much More Than a Market*.
Enrico Letta is an Italian politician, political scientist, and academic. He currently serves as dean of the IE School of Politics, Economics and Global Affairs at IE University. Previously, he served as Prime Minister of Italy from 2013 to 2014 and as national secretary of the Democratic Party from 2021 to 2023. Throughout his political career, he has held various ministerial posts, including Minister for European Affairs (1998–1999), Minister of Industry, Trade, and Crafts (2000), and Minister of Industry and Foreign Trade (2000–2001).
In the academic sphere, Letta served as dean of the Paris School of International Affairs at Sciences Po Paris from 2015 to 2021. He has also taught at the University of San Diego (California) and the University of Technology Sydney. Since 2016, he has chaired the Jacques Delors Institute.
The Board of Directors of Paneuropa Spain considers that “Enrico Letta’s political and academic career reflects a firm commitment to the European integration project. Beyond his work as a public official, Letta has remained consistently involved in advancing and strengthening the European Union, as demonstrated by his report ‘Much More Than a Market,’ in which he proposes concrete measures to complete the Single Market. Through these proposals, he advocates for greater economic integration that will consolidate the Union as a solid, cohesive bloc capable of competing successfully on the global stage.”
Letta thus joins the list of distinguished figures honored with the Otto von Habsburg Award, which includes, among others, former Minister of Education Íñigo Méndez de Vigo; former Vice-President of the European Commission Margaritis Schinas; Jean Monnet Chair ad personam Professor Teresa Freixes; former President of the European Parliament José María Gil-Robles; and former minister and businessman Abel Matutes.
During the event, the importance of the European Union as a peace project for the entire world was highlighted, as Pope Leo XIV reminded us during his visit to Spain, along with the importance of preserving European unity in the face of fragmentation, which is the greatest danger facing Europe.
The Albanian Ambassador, Entela Gjika, played a prominent role in the ceremony, symbolizing the desire of the Western Balkan countries to join, along with Ukraine and Moldova, the great European family.
The event was attended by numerous ambassadors, diplomats, business leaders, and politicians, both from the Spanish Parliament and the European Parliament, with the participation of the Director of the European Commission Representation in Spain, Daniel Calleja.
The award ceremony took place on Thursday, June 11, at 6:30 p.m., in the Ruth Bader Ginsburg Auditorium of the Rule of Law Digital Center in Madrid. Speakers at the event included former presidents of Paneuropa Spain: Ramón Pérez-Maura, opinion editor of El Debate, who spoke about the life of Otto von Habsburg; and Iñigo Méndez de Vigo, who discussed Archduke Otto’s role as a member of the European Parliament; Carlos Uriarte Sánchez, current president of Paneuropa Spain and professor of law; and Javier Cremades, attorney, founder, and president of Cremades & Calvo Sotelo, as well as president of the World Law Foundation, who served as host for the event and ensured its success.