What Costas spoke about.

14 Mar

2023

EN Speech

EU-Armenia relations (debate)

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Madam President, first of all, I extend my congratulations to the rapporteur for this impartial report. In January of this year, we had a long discussion in this plenary session regarding the blockade of a large corridor by the Azerbaijanis against 120 000 Armenians living in Nagorno-Karabakh, including 30 000 children, with no medicine, no food and no schooling. Since then, in February, we had th…

14 Mar

2023

EL Speech

Question Time (Commission) - How to ensure energy security in the EU in 2023

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My question will be very simple. I would expect you to answer us whether the authoritarian Erdogan regime has aligned itself with our energy security policies. My question is very simple and I expect a simple answer. If you don't have an answer, tell us. But I expect an answer and not anything else.…

14 Mar

2023

EL Speech

Question Time (Commission) - How to ensure energy security in the EU in 2023

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Mr President, energy security is an important pillar for achieving our objective as the European Union of strategic autonomy. An important parameter of our energy security is also the independence from authoritarian regimes, such as Putin's. But this also means that we have put in place a strict framework for sanctions. How can we get rid of such authoritarian regimes, not just Putin's? And I awai…

13 Feb

2023

EN Speech

REPowerEU chapters in recovery and resilience plans (debate)

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Madam President, first of all, congratulations, especially to the three rapporteurs. This proposal aims to support Member States to become independent from Russian fossil fuel and accelerate the energy transition with access to loans and additional grants under the RRF. It aims also to help them cope with the short—term effects of the energy crisis, bringing down the high energy bills European con…

13 Feb

2023

EN Speech

EU response to the humanitarian situation following the earthquake in Türkiye and Syria (debate)

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Madam President, the extent of destruction is still hard to grasp: tens of thousands of lives lost or missing, destruction and mourning. Among the lost, 24 schoolchildren, our children from the Turkish occupied part of Cyprus with their companions. From the very moment, the Republic of Cyprus expressed readiness to contribute a team of rescuers with medical assistance. But the Erdoğan regime rejec…

1 Feb

2023

EL Speech

Preparation of the Special European Council meeting of February, in particular the need to develop sustainable solutions in the area of asylum and migration (debate)

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Mr President, we expect the Council to finally come up with a European binding framework on legal migration and asylum protection for those who need it, on the basis of solidarity and – at last – to address the root causes. But now the frontline Member States bear all the burden, social and economic, on their own. Especially in the Eastern Mediterranean, illegal immigration has an institutional, o…

18 Jan

2023

EN Speech

Humanitarian consequences of the blockade in Nagorno-Karabakh

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Mr President, for over a month the only road connecting Nagorno-Karabakh with Armenia and the outer world has been blocked by self—proclaimed environmentalists from Azerbaijan, joined now with Azerbaijani military personnel. This blockade has led to a severe humanitarian crisis for over 120 000 Armenians, who stay there with no food, no fuel, no medication – and they call that their home for over …

17 Jan

2023

EN Speech

Implementation of the common foreign and security policy - annual report 2022 - Implementation of the common security and defence policy - annual report 2022 (debate)

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Madam President, this report reflects the annual evaluation by the European Parliament of the implementation of the EU Common Security and Defence Policy, and is the first after the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the adoption of the EU Strategic Compass. In an era of threats and aggression, the future of the EU depends on our commitment to defend our common values through an EU defence union, by …

13 Dec

2022

EN Speech

Turkish airstrikes on northern Syria and the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (debate)

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Mr President, on 20 November, Türkiye launched a major air offensive attack in Rojava, Syria, and in the Kurdistan region of Iraq, which continues uninterrupted against targets, including civilians and infrastructure. This was portrayed by Türkiye as a response to the bombing attack a few days earlier that was attributed to the Kurds. Since then, though, the Turkish narrative has change a few time…

22 Nov

2022

EL Speech

Situation in Libya (debate)

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Madam President, first of all, congratulations to the rapporteur on the report and to colleagues. The way out of the conflict in Libya is one: free and fair elections. Unfortunately, however, the interim government in Tripoli, whose mandate has ended, refuses to cooperate and for this reason we will continue to see crimes, impunity and foreign interference, especially from Russia and Turkey. In fa…

9 Nov

2022

EN Speech

REPowerEU chapters in recovery and resilience plans (debate)

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Mr President, the current energy crisis and the high inflation require urgent decisions. Tomorrow, the European Parliament is called upon to vote on this regulation, which allows Member States to amend their national recovery and resilience plans by including new reforms and investments in energy related projects financed by additional requests for grants and loans. The urgency of the situation le…

19 Oct

2022

EL Speech

Preparation of the European Council meeting of 20-21 October 2022 (debate)

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Madam President, since the beginning of the Russian invasion and with the successive packages of sanctions, we have insisted that there is a great need for a parallel European response to the coming consequences, with solidarity at the centre. The European Commission then – unfortunately – looked elsewhere. Unfortunately, we did not have the same common understanding as we did with the pandemic. B…

17 Oct

2022

EL Speech

One-minute speeches on matters of political importance

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Mr President, the Russian invasion of Ukraine has highlighted the urgent need for the European Union to have a geopolitical role in its neighbourhood and in the world. We live in a time when authoritarian regimes are attacking our democratic societies. Warlike violators of international law are not treated with soft power; Putin and Erdogan are not met with statements of concern. We will not ensur…

4 Oct

2022

EN Speech

Question Time (VPC/HR) Heightening tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan following the recent military escalation

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Mr Borrell, being balanced is like the title I see here: tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Being impartial means that we should be straight on the facts. Around midnight on 12 September this year, the Azerbaijani armed forces launched a large-scale military attack against the Republic of Armenia in several directions from the eastern part of Armenia-Azerbaijan border. In this pre—planned at…

13 Sep

2022

EL Speech

Renewed partnership with the Southern Neighbourhood – a new agenda for the Mediterranean (debate)

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Madam President, continuing with the Commissioner's reasoning for cooperation with reliable partners in our neighbourhood, the Mediterranean, I would add the following: we need, as the European Union, reliable partners who respect international law and in particular the law of the sea of the United Nations. We need partners who respect the sovereign rights of other states in the region, and in par…

6 Jul

2022

EN Speech

Conclusions of the European Council meeting of 23-24 June 2022 (continuation of debate)

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Mr President, I am glad that the Chamber is full now and that everyone will listen. In June’s conclusion of the European Council, there was another call on Turkey to respect international law and terminate its unilateral and aggressive actions in the Eastern Mediterranean. However, I would like everyone to remember that in March 2021, the statement of the European Council – I am reading straight f…

22 Jun

2022

EN Speech

Implementation of the Recovery and Resilience Facility (debate)

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Madam President, the Commissioner will need his headphones. Κύριε Πρόεδρε, ο μηχανισμός ανάκαμψης δημιουργήθηκε για αντιμετώπιση των επιπτώσεων της πανδημίας. Είχε πρωτόγνωρα χαρακτηριστικά και αντικατοπτρίζει ουσιαστικά την αλληλεγγύη και τη δυνατότητα της Ευρωπαϊκής Ένωσης. Και στο σημερινό ψήφισμα επισημαίνουμε τη σημαντική θετική επιρροή του, αλλά παραθέτουμε και στοιχεία για σωστή βελτίωση τη…

7 Jun

2022

EN Speech

The EU’s Foreign, Security and Defence Policy after the Russian invasion of Ukraine (debate)

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Madam President, the Russian invasion of Ukraine is an act of aggression to forcefully revise the European security order. Our response should continue to be united and firm against the specific aggressor, but also a time to move faster with the common foreign security and defence policy based on common rules and a common defence mechanism, as stated in the Strategic Compass – common rules, includ…

6 Jun

2022

EL Speech

2021 Report on Turkey (debate)

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Mr President, congratulations to the rapporteur on his report. Neo-Ottoman expansionism brought us here, with security issues for the Eastern Mediterranean states, especially Greece and Cyprus, but also for other states such as Syria, Libya, up to the Caucasus, for one reason: We followed the policy of appeasement, which unfortunately feeds the beast. Human rights and international law, both, are …

4 May

2022

EN Speech

The case of Osman Kavala in Turkey

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Mr President, Turkey is a member of the Council of Europe, which binds Turkey to the rulings of the European Court of Human Rights. The European Court, however, in a final decision asked for the release of Kavala. But Turkey not only refuses his release, but also sentences him to life imprisonment. Similar rulings regarding the imprisonment of Demirtaş, a political leader and also a human rights d…

3 May

2022

EN Speech

Question Time (Commission) Europe’s Energy Autonomy: The strategic importance of renewables and energy interconnections and efficiency

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LNG, by the way, is part of the transition period towards 2050. So LNG can be part of the energy mix tomorrow. But my question is this: talking about energy autonomy, would the Commission consider to extend the sanctions, Madam Commissioner? Would the Commission consider to extend the sanctions by including companies controlled by the Kremlin, such as Rosatom, which built up nuclear stations throu…

3 May

2022

EL Speech

Question Time (Commission) Europe’s Energy Autonomy: The strategic importance of renewables and energy interconnections and efficiency

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Madam President, my question is very specific. We are talking about strategic autonomy, which starts with energy. Commissioner, I would like you to explain this to me, which is also the question of many European citizens, particularly in the eastern Mediterranean. Strategic autonomy by increasing energy imports is not strategic autonomy in energy. We have our own findings, especially in the easter…

10 Mar

2022

EL Speech

Destruction of cultural heritage in Nagorno-Karabakh

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Madam President, culture must be a means of bringing people together, not a means of hatred. The destruction and desecration of cultural monuments of religious or national heritage violates international law and the principles of the European Union, to which we all commit ourselves and serve them. When destruction or desecration is carried out with a systematic plan following the prevalence of wea…

14 Feb

2022

EL Speech

European Central Bank – annual report 2021 (continuation of debate)

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Madam President, (to Mrs Lagarde and Mr Gentiloni in English) on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the euro, I would like to stress the important role of the European Central Bank in the recovery and strengthening of the euro, especially in difficult times, especially when it is being challenged. At that time, Mrs Lagarde, the collapse of the euro was likely to lead to the collapse of the Eu…

15 Dec

2021

EL Speech

State of play of the RRF (Recovery and Resilience Facility) (debate)

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Madam President, there were many who questioned the need for a European response to the pandemic or sought to limit such European intervention. Today, the importance of the mechanism by financing it with common debt is accepted by almost everyone and few question it. I repeat a few remarks for improvement. Firstly, funding should be channelled in a timely manner for the implementation of reforms a…