What Marc spoke about.

29

Apr

2026

FR Speech

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Sudan’s abandoned humanitarian crisis: three years of conflict (debate)

Mr President, listen, I am very uncomfortable when I hear colleagues whining at me about the situation in Sudan without being clear about the role that the Western powers actually play. Let's be clear. Because the colleagues here today say: "Ah yes, but the role of the … Emirates," they are right. But they are the same ones who, tomorrow, say: Ah! But our partners in the Gulf must be supported." L…

29

Apr

2026

FR Speech

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Situation in Lebanon: implementation of the ceasefire, support peace efforts and humanitarian access (debate)

Mr President, Israel has invaded, occupies a good part of Lebanon – another country – and the consequences are terrible: There are more than a million Lebanese on the run, we have seen that they throw 100 bombs in ten minutes on urban centers. It's really hard to imagine. They kill journalists, first by hitting the car, then the journalist flees to a house, they hit the house, when the ambulance a…

29

Apr

2026

FR Speech

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Danger of normalising relations with Russia, including its participation in major cultural and sports events (debate)

Madam President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, I have a concrete question: You don't want Russian artists to enter competitions in Europe, because Russia is waging an illegal war in Ukraine. But you accept without any problem the participation of Israel in these contests, and in particular in Eurovision. While Israel starves and executes children, tortures and rapes prisoners, wages illegal …

29

Apr

2026

FR Speech

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EU strategy in response to the ongoing Middle East crisis, its implications on energy prices and the availability of fertilizers (joint debate)

Madam President, Commissioner, there is a nurse who came to see me and said: Mr Botenga, you are in Europe. Talk about it, because I do more than an hour to get to work, an hour to get home by car, and, with fuel prices, it's just more possible. He's right, because he, unlike the European Commission, doesn't have a plane, he doesn't have a private jet, he doesn't have a private driver, he doesn't …

25

Mar

2026

FR Speech

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Imminent death penalty threats in Iran in the light of the latest executions, including on 18 and 19 March 2026, by the Iranian regime (debate)

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, every day, Iranian children are found dead or barely alive under the rubble of their homes. Every day, Lebanese and Palestinian children share the same fate. Yet their lives, their deaths, do not deserve a debate here, do not deserve a clear condemnation here. And why? Because the culprits are your friends, in Tel Aviv, in Washington. Even more so…

11

Mar

2026

FR Speech

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Rise of political violence, notably by far-left organisations (debate)

11

Mar

2026

FR Speech

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Immunity of International Criminal Court officials and the activation of the EU Blocking Statute to strengthen EU strategic autonomy (debate)

11

Mar

2026

EN Speech

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EUCO and situation in the Middle East (joint debate)

Madam President, most of you don't condemn, even support Trump's and Netanyahu's war on Iran, yet claim to stand with the Iranian people. Now, I dare you to say that to the eyes of that seven-year-old girl, her backpack still beside her desk, that was killed when a US Tomahawk missile hit her elementary school. Dare to admit to the 167 other victims in that school that you are offering European ba…

10

Mar

2026

FR Speech

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Tackling barriers to the single market for defence - Flagship European defence projects of common interest

10

Mar

2026

FR Speech

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Cutting red tape to enable a competitive and clean transition – the urgent need to shorten and simplify permitting (debate)

Madam President, 100% of the Belgian population now lives in a PFAS risk area, and 20% even in a high-risk area. These so-called eternal chemicals accumulate in our bodies, are in the soil, are found in drinking water and are linked to cancer and hormonal diseases. But today, the European Union, rather than protecting people, is talking about deregulation. Soon, some large companies will no longer…

10

Mar

2026

FR Speech

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Recommendation on enhanced EU-Canada cooperation in the current geopolitical context, including the threats to Canada’s economic stability and sovereignty (debate)

10

Mar

2026

FR Speech

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Guidelines for the 2027 budget - Section III (debate)

Mr President, Commissioner, speaking of the budget, I have read that the Commission wants more money for private jet travel. Finally, you don't call it a "private jet", you talk about "air taxi", it goes better. We take the taxi, certainly it flies, but it remains a taxi. However, within a few years, this budget has increased by 50% – I think we are now at, what, 15 million? – and I said to myself…

10

Mar

2026

FR Speech

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European Semester for economic policy coordination 2026 - European Semester for economic policy coordination: employment and social priorities for 2026 (joint debate)

11

Feb

2026

FR Speech

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Addressing subcontracting chains and the role of intermediaries in order to protect workers’ rights (debate)

Mr President, we know that on any construction site now in Europe – whether it is a hotel, hospital or building site – the prime contractor displays his name in a big way, but in reality the workers work for different companies, different subcontractors – one for pouring concrete, the other for scaffolding, etc. A study has identified up to 188 subcontractors on the same site, 17 levels. And we se…

11

Feb

2026

FR Speech

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State violence in Minneapolis and the rule of law in the United States (topical debate)

Madam President, it is terrifying to imagine masked militiamen to the teeth who not only attack protesters who demonstrate peacefully, but in addition to seeing Robocop To kidnap Liam, a five-year-old child, and then to have the far right come here just to do its theater to applaud these fascist practices, to hope that this happens also at home. It's terrifying. Trump sends his police, his private…

10

Feb

2026

FR Speech

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Violence in the Great Lakes Region, particularly in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (debate)

10

Feb

2026

EN Speech

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Situation in Northeast Syria, the violence against civilians and the need to maintain a sustainable ceasefire (debate)

Mr President, I want to point out the elephant in the room, because you've mentioned the sovereignty of Syria, but no one here condemned the fact that Israel wiped out the entire Syrian military infrastructure, taking advantage of the regime change. No one here is condemning the fact that the United States still have troops in Syria, and they should withdraw. Otherwise, we cannot speak of sovereig…

10

Feb

2026

FR Speech

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Building a stronger European defence in light of an increasingly volatile international environment (debate)

9

Feb

2026

FR Speech

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Order of business

21

Jan

2026

FR Speech

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European Council meeting (joint debate)

Mr President, Mr Costa, Mrs Kallas, last year the President of the European Commission, Mrs von der Leyen, was in Washington and took some orders. We saw her with her little notepad. How many American weapons do we have to buy? Okay, it's okay. How much of your gas? Okay, okay. And how much do we pay him? It's okay. Total bid. We fell silent when the United States spied on our leaders. We fell sil…

20

Jan

2026

FR Speech

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CFSP and CSDP (Article 36 TEU) (joint debate)

Mr President, High Representative, colleagues, have you seen Trump's message about Macron? Finally, Macron's message that Trump showed, where he says: Listen Donald, we agree so much on Syria and Iran, please leave Greenland to us. I think it perfectly synthesizes a good part of European foreign policy in recent decades. We always agreed with the United States when it came to bombing the countries…

20

Jan

2026

FR Question

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Brutal repression against protesters in Iran (debate)

I think the question is not "are we in solidarity, yes or no, with the Iranian people?" That, we are all and also the left. So what you're saying from that point of view is a lie, let's say. The real question I would dare to ask you is this: Why do you mind the Iranians being killed today, but a year ago, when the Israelis killed them, you didn't mind? Why do the Iranians, their dead, today worry …

20

Jan

2026

EN Speech

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Brutal repression against protesters in Iran (debate)

Mr President, it might have been an interpretation problem, but I heard my colleague, Ms Latinopoulou, claim that the left was a cancer for Europe. I would like to have an investigation into these words, because I think that's absolutely inappropriate language that is not to be used. I would like to submit this to the presidency, because if there's one problem in Europe, it's been their complicity…

20

Jan

2026

EN Speech

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Brutal repression against protesters in Iran (debate)

Mr President, colleagues, High Representative, we have seen the images, and the inhumane killing of thousands of innocent Iranians is vile, shameful and unacceptable. I hear your call for more sanctions, however, academic literature has offered a damning assessment of European and western sanctions so far. Since the 1990s, Iran developed very elaborate middle classes that became the backbone of a …

19

Jan

2026

FR Speech

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Order of business

Madam President, Rule 126. As you said, after two weeks of repression, thousands of deaths in Iran, you have banned Iranian diplomats from entering Parliament. All right, all right. But we have been asking you for two years to exclude Israeli diplomats from this Parliament, because they too come here, with the mandate of a prime minister under an international arrest warrant, defend crimes against…