The European Single Market Strategy is fundamental to our common prosperity and unity. The Single Market is one of the greatest achievements of the European Union, providing unique opportunities for growth and innovation to our citizens and businesses. However, significant barriers still exist that hinder the free movement of goods, services, capital, and people. It is essential to accelerate effo
ROWritten Statement
The future of European competitiveness (debate)
The Draghi report highlights the decline in the European Union's economic and symbolic power in recent decades, highlighting in particular vulnerabilities related to defence and security. Europe has focused excessively on profit and cost optimisation, to the detriment of investment in research and innovation. Dependence on cheap imports from Asia and a lack of investment in technology and industry
ROSpeech
Findings and recommendations of the Special Committee on the European Democracy Shield (debate)
Madam President, Commissioner, the gradual reduction of the American presence must mean for us the beginning of a new era in our security. What Mrs. Strack-Zimmermann was telling us before is really troubling. We have to do our defense programs, our own programs to do them right. Let's take a few examples: the SAFE programme. The SAFE programme is already full of controversy in many countries in E
ROSpeech
EU governance under pressure – institutional responses to global challenges (debate)
Mr President, Commissioner, the diagnosis is clear, say all our colleagues here, with or without a veto, about which we are talking too much. We probably need some concrete measures: a permanent European mechanism for democratic resilience and countering hybrid threats. We need to accelerate European strategic decision-making in crisis situations by reducing institutional bottlenecks and broadenin
ROSpeech
EU cybersecurity and preparedness in view of advanced AI systems (debate)
Madam President, Commissioner, cybersecurity and artificial intelligence are becoming Europe's new strategic front. Digital attacks do not only target computer networks, they affect critical infrastructures, public institutions, democratic processes and even the minds of our fellow citizens. At the same time, advanced AI systems are accelerating information manipulation and hybrid warfare against
ROSpeech
The need to combat antisemitism and protect Jewish life in Europe, following the recent attacks against the Jewish community in the Netherlands and Belgium (debate)
Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, we strongly condemn the attacks against Jewish communities in the Netherlands, Belgium and beyond. These facts show a serious rise in antisemitism in Europe. For the Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats, protecting the lives of Jewish communities is a clear obligation. There is no compromise here. But what we are seeing are not isolat
ROSpeech
Tackling barriers to the single market for defence - Flagship European defence projects of common interest
Madam President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, these reports are very important for the future of European security. They start from a clear reality: Europe has a strong industry, but it is fragmented - too many systems, administrative barriers and too little real cooperation. The reports propose concrete solutions: single market, joint procurement, safer supply chains, support for innovatio
ROSpeech
Building a stronger European defence in light of an increasingly volatile international environment (debate)
Mr President, Madam Vice-President, ladies and gentlemen, the war has changed. The drone has become a mass weapon, has low cost and great efficiency. Europe, however, is not sufficiently prepared. We have fragmented acquisitions, we have critical dependencies on external suppliers for chips, sensors, batteries. We have rules that go slower than technology. In the European Parliament we have to do
ROSpeech
Online piracy of sports and other live events: urgent need to address unsolved issues (debate)
Mr President, Commissioner, online piracy of sporting events is no longer a marginal problem, it is an illegal, fast and well-organised economy. Data show losses of more than EUR 10 billion annually in the European Union. Last year, a network of 22 million illegal users around the world was dismantled in Spain. This value is very high. If the reaction is delayed, any right, any legislation becomes
Mr President, High Representative, Central and Eastern Europe does not discuss the subject of defence and security in abstract terms, it discusses from direct experience. The Eastern border means military pressure, hybrid attacks, disinformation, economic insecurity. You understand these things very well. For our region, European foreign policy is not a diplomatic exercise, it is concrete protecti
ROAnswer
European Democracy Shield – very large online platform algorithms, foreign interference and the spread of disinformation (debate)
Mr President, European Democracy Shield enters the last stage: that of action. I think that for us, especially those who lived during the communist period in the countries of the East, we must mention that this project should keep its transparency and maintain dialogue even with the opponents of democracy. There are a few other important conditions. First, the European Centre for Democratic Resili
ROSpeech
European Defence Industry Programme and a framework of measures to ensure the timely availability and supply of defence products (‘EDIP’) (debate)
Madam President, Commissioner, congratulations! EDIP changes the rules in Europe, puts the defence industry at the centre and transforms procurement from national decisions into joint processes. That is, we are finally giving birth to the common defence ecosystem in Europe. For our countries, the stakes are clear: If you join European networks, you gain access to contracts and technologies, if you
ROSpeech
Institutional consequences of the EU enlargement negotiations (debate)
Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, Mr Sandro Gozi's report is an example of a rational and courageous project at the same time. The European Union is really facing a decisive moment. Enlargement has been seen as a political promise, but it is a test of our institutional capacity. If we want a bigger Union, we need a more efficient Union. Our report makes it clear: without reforms, enlargement ris
ROAnswer
Need for a strong European Democracy Shield to enhance democracy, protect the EU from foreign interference and hybrid threats, and protect electoral processes in the EU (debate)
I don't usually give interviews, I don't remember and I didn't give interviews at Antena 3. Maybe someone else said that. Dear Madam, of course we have some situations in which the institutions may not have communicated exactly as they should have in the case of democracy and this vision of yours is one, certain, ideological and partisan.
ROSpeech
Need for a strong European Democracy Shield to enhance democracy, protect the EU from foreign interference and hybrid threats, and protect electoral processes in the EU (debate)
Madam President, Commissioner, one European Democracy Shield It is not an institutional luxury, but a strategic necessity. Today, democracies are no longer attacked only with weapons, but by manipulating information, distorting electoral processes and undermining citizens' trust. We need urgent and swift action. I propose three urgent directions. First, I was happy to hear it from the Commissioner
ROSpeech
Strengthening Moldova’s resilience against Russian hybrid threats and malign interference (debate)
Mr President, Commissioner, the Republic of Moldova is today one of the countries most exposed to Russia's hybrid aggressions: disinformation campaigns, energy pressures, attempts at economic and political destabilisation. In the face of this permanent attack, our gesture of solidarity is very beautiful and this touches us, the Romanians, as well as our Moldovan brothers, but we have to do some co
Mr President, Commissioner, the revision of the Association Agreement is a hard decision, but the weight of this decision must not cause us to lose our balance. Yes, it seems like a confrontation of perceptions, one between David and Goliath, but in this struggle of perception, let's not forget that on October 7 there was a brutal attack, with over 100 civilian deaths, with hundreds of hostages. S
Mr President, dear colleagues, dear young people who are in the stands, we mark a day of memory and truth, we commemorate the Armenian Genocide, a historical tragedy in which over one and a half million Armenians were exterminated in the Ottoman Empire. This act was not only a profound humanitarian suffering, but also a historic precedent. The silence of the world at that time paved the way for cr
ROSpeech
Unlawful detention and sham trials of Armenian hostages, including high-ranking political representatives from Nagorno-Karabakh, by Azerbaijan
Mr President, dear colleagues, the situation of Armenian political prisoners in Nagorno-Karabakh raises fundamental questions about justice, stability and the future of peace in the South Caucasus. Of course, the Caucasus region, as James Forsyth describes it, is one of the most colorful and vivid in the world, and the diversity of local interests complicates any diplomatic situation and any diplo
ROSpeech
White paper on the future of European defence (debate)
Mr President, Commissioner Kubilius, we have heard today that the time for illusions has passed, so we must say that the time for paper strategies has also passed. We now need a roadmap for a European army. We need an action plan to strengthen the European Union's strategic autonomy and reduce its dependence on NATO at this time. We need three pillars for that. There was a lot of talk about the fi
ROSpeech
Establishing the Reform and Growth Facility for the Republic of Moldova (debate)
Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, the Republic of Moldova is in a process of rapid transformation. It's amazing what's going on. It is approaching the European Union step by step. These changes, in order to be sustainable, need to increase the capacity to withstand shocks, to increase societal resilience. Moldova is in a fragile geopolitical context, marked by many risks and threats. That is