Speeches

Mr President, dear colleagues, Commissioner, I fully support imposing sanctions on Russian and Belarusian agricultural imports to the EU. It is incomprehensible that this has not been done yet, since the agricultural sector is very vocal about Ukrainian exports. This raises questions about the actual political intentions and reasons some Member States have for the Ukrainian export blockade. I find it deplorable that the Polish authorities are allowing Russian and Belarusian grain into the market, even doubling the numbers in 2023, but still allowing the illegal blocking of Ukrainian exports to the EU market. Russia’s disinformation campaign has misused the situation as well, trying to aggravate the problem with our farmers through lies and propaganda and decreasing our generosity in the trade liberalisation proposal with Ukraine. I urge the Parliament not to give in. The main culprit is laughing at us while we fight among ourselves.

Madam President, dear colleagues, Commissioner, Mr Shipton, Julian Assange – a candidate for the 2022 Sakharov Prize – brought to light documents revealing cases of war crimes and human rights violations. For these efforts, Julian has received recognition from numerous organisations advocating for freedom of speech. A couple of hours ago in this plenary, we mourned the unjust treatment and death of a man who stood against the authority of power – a man who received the 2021 Sakharov Prize and who brought to light abuse of power and corruption. Alexei has also received recognition from freedom fighters across the world. Why am I speaking about both of them? Because we acknowledge with one of them that the person can be a symbol, regardless of their mistakes or disagreements we might have – a symbol of the fight against injustice, oppression, corruption, of David standing up to Goliath, not afraid of the consequences. We condemn consequences for one of them. I stand before you to also voice my unwavering support for what Julian Assange’s work represents: the right of citizens to be protected against states’ abuse of power, to be informed, and the right for journalists as well as individuals to expose such abuse and not fear punishment. You don’t get to pick your favourite whistleblower. You either stand with all of them or none at all.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, but also a shift in Bosnia and Herzegovina and other countries. We are working on a common future and making sure that we want to strengthen our relationships. Obviously, we all want the same result. But do we choose a viable path to it? Like the citizens of the European Union, the European Parliament has repeatedly asked for the opening of the founding Treaties, for fundamental reforms in the right of veto, in how we decide who and how we represent the country, in how we elect the Commissioner. However, there is no appetite in any Member State after Treaty change and, in fact, after major reforms. We now have many years before the accession countries meet the entry criteria. We have time and we waste it on political cowardice. Where did the visionaries go? Or rather, why aren't any of them allowed back to the wheel? We need more courage. Think about it in the election.

Mr President, colleagues, in 2022, the Azerbaijani gas imports to Europe rose to barely 3 %. The contract, on the other hand, earned Baku EUR 15.6 billion last year. Azerbaijan also imports 65 % of its oil to European countries. But within our energetic mix, they are just under the category of ‘others’. Do you see it? We are not, by any stretch, dependent on Aliyev imports. The only one who benefits from all of this is Aliyev himself. Now compare: as a result of ethnic cleansing, more than 140 000 Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh were forced to flee their homes and were starved for months during the Lachin corridor blockade. This is not even the classic dilemma between our own stability and prosperity and between human rights. So I am asking you to relay a message to Mr Borrell, who is absent again: what will you do to help Armenia? And will you persuade your Commission colleagues to cut us off the measly gas and oil imports from Azerbaijan to free our hands?

Mr President, dear colleagues, the fraud elections in Belarus are coming. One would think Lukashenka gives up this charade after 30 years, but no, he has to pretend he still has power over the country. And thus the authorities got inspired in Russia and North Korea, I guess, and intensified their oppression of journalists, lawyers, activists and even families of those who ran away. As if people in Belarus would not know, without mass protests in the streets, that the system is rigged and Lukashenka should be out. As if we here in the European Union could acknowledge his regime this time around if only he silenced all opposition. No, no, no, no, no! Our sanctions will remain. Our support to opposition remains, and our help to get people out and grant them asylum and support remains. Let’s have a coordinated response at the European level. Lukashenkas and Putins of this world shall soon run out of breath. The civil society shall prevail.

Mr President, dear colleagues, Commissioner, self-regulation is a concept that has proven a spectacular failure in many industries in the last decades. Only if all market actors are equally forced or motivated by the state to improve their product, at the cost of their profits, only then they will do it. It is therefore no surprise that companies with billions of users are cutting their disinformation-related staff and expenditure, and continue to profit from disinformation through engagement. Our citizens, only months before the European elections, have the choice between several US and Chinese social media apps that will flood them with conventional and now also AI-generated disinformation. As lawmakers, we have failed to hold these online giants to account. If the DSA should have a value after all, let it be the knowledge to the next legislature that self-regulation is self-delusion.

– Madam President, dear colleagues, China has a long history of suppression, persecution and torture of its many minorities. The Falun Gong are no exception and had to endure decades of treatment designed to eradicate them. We must impose economic sanctions on the officials in charge of these crimes, freeze their assets and refuse visas. Our huge trade relationship must not become the reason to look away – away from forced organ harvesting, forced sterilisations and mass concentration camps in the 21st century. The collective European Union has, for decades, done nothing to deter the CCP from these crimes. Instead, we send huge business delegations together with our heads of state and accept China’s wishes to treat these crimes as a domestic issue, not to be interfered with. Colleagues, at a time when China supplies much of the needed war materials to Russia and blatantly commits crimes against humanity, let us not fund our own demise and sell our values.

Madam President, there are six months before the elections. In recent years, we have appealed countless times to representatives of national governments to secure elections. In vain. We now have 6 months to try to implement at least a few of the measures that the Commission is coming up with to protect them. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad the democracy protection package is finally on the table. The proposal to strengthen civil society, the proposal to protect elections, are extremely important steps. What bothers me, however, is that they are clearly not important enough for some EU leaders who have made sure that they are mere recommendations, not enforceable legislation. Many of them probably believe that they are not affected by disinformation or attacks on the conduct of elections. Their reasoning is obvious. After all, the attacks are mostly directed against liberal and pro-European forces. What would they care if they weren't on their own? Let me tell you something: When these anti-democratic alliances stamp out confidence in the system as such, you will go down with it. It'll be too late.

Madam President, dear colleagues, dear Georgian friends, first, allow me to express my condolences to Tamaz Ginturi’s beloved – my thoughts are with you. I do not make differences between one forcefully taken innocent life or thousands. It should be met with an equally strong reaction. When Russian troops started to shoot our Ukrainian neighbours, we were quick to react and sanction. There is another occupied country in our neighbourhood whose citizens get murdered and abducted by Russia. Is Georgia further? Yes. Does it matter? No. I urge the Council to add to the next sanction package or to a new one, those responsible for the death of Tamaz and for the suffering of Georgians. Kremlin wants them to live in fear, to give up their European path. Give them courage, and Putin will lose.

Mr President, dear colleagues, this is an important anniversary, particularly with the new enlargement impetus. Because of that, we should assess the state of the Union. For too long, the EU has neglected the internal attacks on its main values. We should demand the same governance and rule of law standards from existing members as we set for the candidates. Especially now, when the enlargement process seems to have got a new breath, we must hold aspiring members to the highest standards, but also create methods to enforce those standards on current members across the Union. If a country has to fulfil Copenhagen criteria to join us and can then wipe themselves with them the other day, we will never be a Union – a functioning one, at least. We must establish post-accession compliance measures, going beyond what is currently in place to actually ensure the functioning of the European Community. Otherwise, we promise our neighbours instability, whether we accept them or not.

Mr President, dear colleagues, this House worked on the DSA for the past years, and I experienced personally how well-coordinated, well-funded and well-connected lobbyists from the digital monopolies have watered down every single aspect of it. Where we wanted hard rules and obligations, we got self-regulation and empty promises. The latest floods of uncontrolled disinformation in connection to Israel and Palestine will likely pass in a few weeks, and another war, disaster or election will serve as the next occasion to flood our minds with more uncontrolled lies to sow distrust. Unless, that is, we actually make a point right here and now to show the Twitters, TikToks and Facebooks of this world that if you fund, incite and make a business of spreading disinformation, we will kick you out of the single market. The self-regulation honeymoon is over. I want to see fines imposed and behaviours changed.

Mr President, dear colleagues, when we discuss Russia’s sanctions circumvention – brushing off the obvious, tax havens and post-Soviet Mafia states – there is a massive elephant in the room: China. Putin and Xi will meet in Beijing today to celebrate many things. Besides the Belt and Road anniversary, they will undoubtedly toast the successful negation of our anti-war sanctions. Total trade between China and Russia hit a new record high in 2022, up to 30%. China might have single-handedly neutralised many of our sanctions by keeping Putin’s petro-economy afloat and the war in Ukraine going. China replaces suppliers of Western electronic and engineering equipment. Beijing has also helped Russia circumvent the SWIFT sanctions by facilitating more and more trade in Yuan. It is evident that while we attempt to slow down and stop Putin’s mass-murder campaign in Ukraine, China does everything short of direct weapon shipments to help Russia. My question to colleagues from the Council and the Commission is: you know full well that China’s involvement has been discussed in the 11th sanction package focussed on circumvention, and I know full well that your institutions took China out of its scope. How many more pointless sanction packages are you planning to pass, then, while the elephant in the room remains unaddressed? Also, maybe you can pass on the message to Hungarian Council officials, and they could tell us whether Mr Orban’s and Hungary’s position is now pro-Putin, as he has not only blocked another help to Ukraine, but is also the only EU leader present in Beijing today.

Mr President, dear colleagues, I am very pleased to see that the relationship between the EU and Moldova is strengthening and that the EU provides support through means such as the Council's support package, direct budget support and the temporary trade liberalisation for Moldovan agricultural products, which we helped to negotiate. Additionally, I welcome Moldova's efforts towards judicial reform, civil society engagement and gender equality and overall positive signals from the Commission regarding the nine recommendations’ implementation. However, there is still much more work to be done as implementing deep structural reforms is essential for alignment with the EU standards. Moldova must step up, notably in fighting corruption, organised crime and public administration reforms. Overall, I appreciate the new EU enlargement momentum in this political term. Nevertheless, it is crucial that the Member States deliver on their promises in the accession processes for those who wish to join our European family. And I hope that one day it will also be Moldova.

Madam President, we have spoken many times on this ground about Nagorno-Karabakh and the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Now the situation has dramatically escalated due to the attack and the insolence of Azerbaijan. The result is over 100,000 ethnic Armenians fleeing Nagorno-Karabakh and the forced surrender of local defenses. We all know that the peace negotiations went in the Azerbaijani direction only on one condition, so that ethnic Armenians could remain. So how are we supposed to interpret this attack and the violation of all the agreements? There's only one explanation. Aliyev is seeking ethnic cleansing of Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh. Azerbaijan has become bold. Just like some of us warned. The European Union has started importing oil and gas from dictator Aliyev because: What could go wrong if you replace dependence on one dictator with another? This tied the EU's hands. But not all of us are just going to stand by. Today I went to support before Parliament native Armenians and Armenians who live in France and have come to pray for their loved ones. They don't understand how we can continue to pursue this hypocritical foreign policy. How can we defend one country from attacks and leave the other at the mercy of others? So I pray for the protesters outside and for all the fleeing inhabitants of Nagorno-Karabakh. The Commission, the Council, the member countries, not another tragedy like in Ukraine, not another retreat to dictators!

Madam President, dear colleagues, dear Commissioner, ever since the Commission has decided that Member States shall not be attacked through economic coercion by adversaries, we in the European Parliament have been trying to do everything to make our deterrence credible. It has also been a direct response to Chinese threats and coercion to Lithuania, a Member State, when they dared to call their Taiwanese embassy Taiwanese. Yet, when the negotiations reached the trilogues, the Council, representing the Member States, made it clear that they do not want the instrument at all. So what we are today celebrating is a watered-down, gutted piece of legislation which was done by the Member States that wanted to protect the Member States from very real and very present coercion. It is new legislation and thus it is a success because it presents some sort of new deterrence, deadlines for response and retaliatory countermeasures. And I appreciate it, truly. However, what I do not appreciate is the message that one of the three EU institutions is sending towards its citizens and as well as third countries that they might prefer business as usual rather than protection of their values if they deem it more beneficial. I just warn you, dear Member States, after your values come your institutions and, after that, your source of power. Try to think ahead and protect it before it is too late.

Madam President, dear colleagues, Commissioner, Azerbaijan’s human rights situation is continuously declining. Today we have the case of Dr Gubad Ibadoghlu, an economist, professor, researcher and known critic of the Azerbaijani Government, who, like many others, was forcefully taken, beaten, detained and refused any medical help, causing his already poor health to deteriorate to dangerous levels. This is part of Azerbaijan’s widespread, systemic and horrific abuse of its opposition, of its citizens, using severe harassment, violence and imprisonment. Dr Gubad Ibadoghlu’s case is yet another example of this disturbing trend, but it is also a reminder that we must act. The EU leaders must speak up about this ongoing situation and finally demand Azerbaijan, our partner based on various memorandums and proclamations, to stop the crackdown and release those unjustly detained and imprisoned.

Madam President, dear colleagues, this third and final report will conclude the existence of our Committee on foreign interference. Over three years and three comprehensive reports, we have identified our own vulnerabilities and how our enemies are using them against us. Corruption scandals, political interference, and spying by third countries is not going to stop. By all indications, it will only intensify in the years to come. I am happy that we identified many measures to improve transparency and accountability. We made clear what our loopholes are, and how current rules and systems, such as the transparency register, are not up to the task. I am particularly supporting our recognition of needed enforcement measures. In the end, we can have the most detailed report of vulnerabilities, but without proper enforcement, none of it matters. Let us now fully focus on such measures so that our institutions can stand against those who seek to destroy them.

I originally did not want to actually ask a follow-up question, but you answered something I did not ask. I did not ask the mission to end the blockade. Of course, that’s very logical. No one here is asking that. I asked what the mission is then doing and you can share that with us. So can you share something with us? What is the mission doing?

Mr President, I welcome, Mr Borrell. Well, there are some ongoing peace treaty negotiations, or should be. And, given the current situation where actually the agreement from 2020 was broken by the set-up of the checkpoint from Azerbaijani side in the Lachin corridor, I would like to ask you whether you have any assessment of how the peace treaty negotiations can go on right now, given this hindering of the possibility of any peace negotiations. Then my other question would be related to the mission. You already mentioned several things about it, but I would really like to know in relation to the blockade what the mission already done, what it can do and how it can help on the ground. You said it can't do everything, so I wonder what it does actually, if you can share it with us. And thirdly, also considering the complex ethnic dimension of the issue of the Nagorno-Karabakh issue, I would like to know what are the long-term measures and plans that you and the Commission has that we can do in the region and with what help.

Madam President, firstly, I would like to correct the disinformation that Mr Radačovský has said here about Chinese police stations. Of course, Article 105 is written on the basis that, yes, indeed, those Chinese police stations were here and they were taking the citizens away. However, it is not a question. The question is: So why do you think that two Slovak citizens, young people, died recently by shooting in the Teplárna club, if it was not due to homophobia in Slovakia? Aren't you ashamed of it?

Madam President, dear colleagues, Commissioner, six days ago, Twitter left the voluntary code of practice on disinformation; the voluntary code, by the way, which even Chinese spyware TikTok promised to follow. Commissioner Breton promised Elon Musk that the Digital Services Act is coming anyway. I cannot emphasise enough how glad I am that there is at least one regulation. But will the DSA really protect our elections? The defence of democracy package is promising one directive on foreign funding and only recommendations to Member States on election integrity. The integrity of our electoral processes is being tested like never before in the midst of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and the global conflict between democracies and autocratic regimes. We need to bolster election integrity. And you said it yourself, Commissioner Jourová, There is not enough in the defence of democracy package. So why is there not a majority in the Commission to come up with more than recommendations again? It is a matter of political will and nothing else and we all know that.

Mr President, Mrs Fox, let’s be honest, bullying is not, unfortunately, a new problem. But what is new is the scale and reach of cyber bullying. There is a growing tendency for more and more young people to become victims of its devastating real-life consequences, which can affect their social life and may cause them to experience anxiety, depression and even suicidal ideation. This issue is not just a concern for parents though, it is also a political one that demands real action. I think our proposal of this House should go in three directions: (i) education, raising awareness among young people about the dangers of cyber bullying, (ii) law, holding abusers and predators accountable for their actions. It is long overdue that bullying someone through their intimate pictures should be made a criminal offence, and of course, (iii) support, supporting victims through counselling, so no case ends in a tragedy. Let’s make sure together that we can use technology with enthusiasm, not fear of harassment or abuse.

Madam President, dear colleagues, the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine has severely disrupted the EU’s agricultural markets and food prices. The entire global food price market depends on Ukrainian supplies and might affect all EU consumers, especially if the extreme weather continues, which makes the actions of certain Member States deplorable. The trade policy is solely a European competence and should not be interfered with by individual Member States, notably when their unilateral actions are based on simple political gains, undermining our European solidarity. Such interferences might reverse the trade liberalisation’s positive outcomes and play into hands of ‘disinformators’. Additionally, I would appreciate more transparency on the deal’s content. Could the Commission share its plans on how they are planning to resolve this issue structurally, instead of just providing a temporary solution? Notably, if we will have to renew the trade measures in a year again?

Mr President, dear colleagues, Commissioner, the war does not have a human face nor spare the lives of anyone, including children. However, after the atrocities of the 20th century, we made a social contract and set the lines of international law that shouldn’t be crossed. Nevertheless, it seems that for the Kremlin, history is not something we should learn from. Children are forcefully taken and deported to Russian camps. Then their fate lies either in forced adoption into Russian families, pro-Russian re-education programmes or military training. And all this is sanctified by the Russian Government as its officials of all levels are involved in removals, camp operations and the prevention of their return to Ukraine. To be frank, international law has been a challenging and often ineffective tool. However, it is our responsibility to ensure that these and any other deplorable actions will be punished and not repeated. When we find culprits of criminal offences, the case is usually closed. Why block the door here?

Madam President, dear colleagues, dear Commissioners, our single market has the power to set global standards by the force of its size and by our first—mover advantage. Cybersecurity as a requirement for digital products and software is becoming ever more important for our citizens. As attacks increase rapidly, vulnerabilities in US and Chinese digital goods are equally unacceptable and create a global explosion of cybercrime. Whether these vulnerabilities are intentional, as a certain Edward Snowden revealed, or a result of a ‘moving fast and breaking things’ mentality does not matter in the end for the security of European citizens. I have already seen global software providers call for a slow and measured approach to our legislative attempts in the cyber realm, and I am afraid that the millions in lobby expenditure by these very companies will make sure that we move too slow to have a substantial result by the end of this mandate, or that it will be filled with so many exemptions that it won’t be worth the effort anymore. We Pirates want cybersecurity by design and we want the scope of cyber—related acts to leave no soft spots in our digital single market. European companies and providers must be able to distinguish themselves for higher security standards and be able to compete with the incumbent providers on these standards. Some of the most trusted and secure systems are open source Mattermost, Linux and Signal are popular and used, without much advertising, because of their reliability and high safety standards. We must embrace this approach in the EU and move away from proprietary code and commercial secrecy that leaves plenty of room for hidden vulnerabilities.