When Ursula von der Leyen walked into the Strasbourg hemicycle to deliver her 2025 State of the European Union address, she knew the stakes were high. Stuck in the middleTo complicate matters further, the parliamentary audience facing von der Leyen was much less welcoming than it had been in previous years. It was crucial, therefore, that von der Leyen’s address struck the right tone. On defence, von der Leyen outlined five initiatives that may prove consequential. Instead, von der Leyen needs to prove her intentions by standing by the hard choices she makes—and following through on the actions they require.