Over the course of three days, Alba Transilvana offered a vibrant mosaic of cultural expression \u2014 from book launches and poetry recitals to thought-provoking debates on identity, sovereignty, and the shifting dynamics of today\u2019s world. Among the notable guests were Gelu Duminic\u0103, Ramona Mezei, Varujan Vosganian, and Horia Roman Patapievici.<\/p>\n
In her keynote address, Associate Professor Dr. Mireille R\u0103doi spotlighted one of the most insidious and dangerous threats of our time: hybrid warfare. Quoting Sun Tzu \u2014 \u201cSupreme excellence consists of breaking the enemy’s resistance without fighting\u201d, she emphasized that this modern form of aggression leaves no visible ruins, but rather \u201cdisoriented people, fractured communities, and nations that no longer recognize themselves.\u201d Hybrid warfare, she warned, \u201cdoes not begin with an official declaration, but with a viral post. It doesn\u2019t conquer cities \u2014 it erodes collective memory, mocks symbols, questions history, and fragments language.\u201d In an age defined by programmed confusion and generalized mistrust, the real battleground is the control of perception and narrative. \u201cHybrid war doesn\u2019t need rockets,\u201d she said. \u201cIt needs just one thing: for us to stop believing in anything.\u201d<\/p>\n
Expanding on these subtle mechanisms, R\u0103doi asserted that the ultimate target of hybrid warfare is not a political regime or institution \u2014 but identity itself. And identity, she argued, is safeguarded through culture. \u201cCulture is the immune system of a nation,\u201d she explained. \u201cIt is what endures when propaganda fades. What remains when the algorithms and information waves retreat.\u201d Therefore, the first targets in any hybrid conflict are not economic or political \u2014 they are cultural, for it is here that meaning, cohesion, and the limits of manipulation reside.<\/p>\n
The questions raised were direct and unsettling: \u201cHow much of our culture is still transmitted, and how much simply inherited? How often do we educate cultural consciousness \u2014 and how often do we merely commemorate it?\u201d In her view, a culturally literate society \u2014 \u201cnot just schooled, but shaped through critical thinking and shared memory\u201d \u2014 becomes harder to divide, manipulate, or control. Culture, then, is \u201cthe invisible armor of a nation.\u201d And when that armor breaks, a nation doesn\u2019t collapse suddenly \u2014 \u201cit withers from within, disintegrates quietly, and forgets how to recognize itself.\u201d<\/p>\n
Within this complex equation \u2014 where identity is the strategic target and culture the last line of defense \u2014 libraries take on a vital role. \u201cLibraries are barracks for the conscience,\u201d said Mireille R\u0103doi. They are not merely repositories of books, but vibrant centers of cultural education, where critical thinking, discernment, and attachment to authentic values are cultivated. In a world where disinformation spreads faster than truth, the library offers \u201caccess to authentic information, promotes reading and intercultural dialogue, and fosters independent thought.\u201d In this light, a strong national network of libraries is not a luxury but a cornerstone of national security \u2014 not in the military sense, but in the formative sense: as institutions that help a society understand who it is, what defines it, and what it must protect.<\/p>\n
In a solemn moment responding to the current geopolitical context, Mireille R\u0103doi presented the audience at Alba Transilvana 2025 with a \u201cProclamation of Culture as a Tool for National Security\u201d \u2014 a powerful call to collective awareness, delivered on the stage of Alba Iulia, a city rich in national symbolism. Through this initiative, she advocated for placing culture at the very center of a nation’s defense strategy \u2014 against not only military threats but also symbolic and identity-based vulnerabilities.<\/p>\n
In this symbolic place of national dignity and historical unity, we solemnly and irrevocably declare that in the age of informational disorder, we proclaim Culture as a tool for defending national security:<\/p>\n
\tOn the Nature of Contemporary Warfare<\/strong> Each of us can sign this proclamation, starting June 22, 2025.<\/p>\n \u201cThe cultural arms race is a strategic necessity in our time. Essential reading, access to verified information, and the development of critical thinking are now vital tools for resisting hybrid warfare \u2014 a warfare capable of toppling social order with just two clicks. That\u2019s why we must urgently re-evaluate our national priorities and treat the budgets for education and culture with the same seriousness and urgency as those for defense. A nation strong in culture is a nation resilient by design,\u201d<\/em> declared Dr. Mireille R\u0103doi, General Director of the \u201cCarol I\u201d Central University Library.<\/strong><\/p>\n *This is a press release.<\/em><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Dr. Mireille R\u0103doi, General Director of the \u201cCarol I\u201d Central University Library in Bucharest, took part in the 16th edition of the Alba Transilvana Book Fair, held on June 20\u201322 in Alba Iulia. Organized by the \u201cLucian Blaga\u201d Alba County Library, the event gathered hundreds of writers, publishers, educators, researchers, and passionate advocates of written […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5598","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ofero.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5598","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ofero.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ofero.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ofero.news\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5598"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ofero.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5598\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ofero.news\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5598"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ofero.news\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5598"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ofero.news\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5598"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n\tToday\u2019s wars are no longer fought only with weapons, but with expertly crafted lies, professionally induced shame, and a vacuum of values disguised as freedom \u2014 delivered through series, algorithms, media agitation, oblivion, and ignorance.
\n\tRomania\u2019s Vulnerability<\/strong>
\n\tRomania is not just militarily exposed \u2014 it is symbolically attacked, culturally disoriented, and ideologically seduced. Our younger generations know more about viral trends than about the founders of our country.
\n\tCulture as a Shield<\/strong>
\n\tCulture is not a decorative element, not the privilege of elites, nor a framed memory in a museum. It is armor and radar \u2014 the genetic code of a nation\u2019s resilience. It is the internal filter that helps us distinguish between manipulation and truth.
\n\tRestoring Culture in National Strategy<\/strong>
\n\tWe call for culture to be recognized as a strategic pillar in national security doctrine. This is our appeal: to see culture not just as aesthetic value, but as a strategic line of defense.
\n\tDefense Begins with Thinking<\/strong>
\n\tToday\u2019s wars do not begin with explosions, but with division and the relativization of truth \u2014 with the erosion of collective memory. If we no longer know what we\u2019re defending, we will not know how to defend it.
\n\tAffective Education<\/strong>
\n\tOur children must learn not only what Romania was, but why it is worth loving \u2014 not through slogans or rhetoric, but through living encounters with literature, history, music, people, and places that carry the heart of our identity.
\n\tCulture as a Weapon of National Defense
\n\tIn the name of memory and the future, we proclaim culture a tool of national defense. For those who wish us to be without culture and without self-awareness already see us as defeated.<\/p>\n