Speeches

Madam President, today we are commemorating the 80th anniversary of the end of the Second World War, the war that devastated Europe, which showed the cruelest face of the human being and the horrifying horrors of which we are capable, of which man is capable. War doesn't just kill the living, it ends up lasting over future generations. Today huge scars of this war remain here in Europe. From that darkness and the ashes of that war we build the institutions we enjoy today, the Europe of peace and dignity, of democracy and freedoms: the Europe of Reconciliation. It is a Europe that is once again threatened by the totalitarianism and authoritarianism that we suffered then, by authoritarian leaders who from outside threaten European security, by authoritarian leaders who also have pawns here, in the European institutions, and who threaten to liquidate the democracy and freedoms that we enjoy today. They are authoritarians who use the same ideas and instrumentalize isolation, fear and lies to sow hatred in the face of what we claim: Truth, justice and memory. A united Europe is the only answer to barbarism.

The next item is the debate on the report by Lara Wolters, on behalf of the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs, on competition policy – annual report 2024 (2024/2079(INI)) (A10-0071/2025).

The next item is the topical debate, governed by Rule 169 of the Rules of Procedure, on winning the global technology race: encouraging innovation and closing funding gaps. I inform the Honourable Members that neither the catch-the-eye procedure nor the ‘blue card’ procedure will apply to this debate. I give the floor for four minutes to Eva Maydell, its author.

The minutes of yesterday's sitting and the texts adopted therein have been distributed. I understand that no one wants to intervene in this regard. The minutes were approved.

The minutes of this sitting will be submitted to Parliament for approval at the beginning of the next sitting. If there is no objection, we will transmit the resolutions adopted at today's meeting to the individuals and bodies mentioned in each of the resolutions.

We turn now to the explanations of vote on the attacks directed against Christians in the Democratic Republic of Congo: defence of freedom of religion and security.

The minutes of yesterday's sitting and the texts adopted therein are available. Does anyone wish to intervene in this regard? No one. The minutes were approved.

The next item is the debate on the basis of the statements by the Council and the Commission on the results of the EU Roma Strategy and the fight against discrimination in the EU (2025/2611(RSP)). Although this is also a point with statements by the Council and the Commission, the Council will not take the floor because it is not present.

The next item on the agenda is the discussion on the basis of Council and Commission statements on the outcome of the recent COP16 negotiations on Biodiversity in Rome (2025/2636(RSP)).

This brings to an end the speaking sessions scheduled for this debate and we begin with the catch the eye. We have so many requests and it's going to be impossible for me to accept them all. That is why we will take into account who has already spoken in this debate, the proportionality between the groups or the absence of some Members during the majority of the debate.

The next item is the Council and Commission statements on EU Consumers Day: filling the gaps in protecting 440 million consumers in the EU (2025/2597(RSP)). Given the absence of the Council in the debate, I will give the floor directly to Commissioner Jørgensen.

Mr President, Commissioner, a Defence White Paper to have today an autonomous Europe that takes full charge of its security. Why? Because we can't take for granted the Atlantic link And we have a war on European soil with a hostile force at our doorstep. How? By better coordinating our spending, building European capacities, spending more European with a European industrial base and spending more in proportion to the challenge we face. For what? To have a deterrent force sufficient to prevent war, that is, to protect peace, to protect our democracies and also to have diplomacy and be a credible global player in the world. And, at the same time, it is not only worth with credits and national budget, we need European resources and financial channels to do so, to ensure that, above all, social spending does not enter into competition with defense spending, something that would be a political suicide for Europe. And, at the same time, diversify our security partnerships in an increasingly multipolar world. That is an autonomous Europe.