What Ivars spoke about.

20

May

2026

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High time to deliver on the Single Market, providing certainty and predictability for EU businesses and quality jobs (continuation of debate)

Dear Chair, Dear Commissioner, It is clear that the single market is clearly the largest economic resource for the European Union and, if used properly, it would indeed be a normal basis for our future prosperity, for our jobs, for our social model and also for its famous competitiveness. But I would like to talk about one other thing, namely the single market for defence materials and defence procurement. Recently, we know that since the start of Russia’s full-scale aggression, we have increased defence spending quite significantly. This is €381 billion in 2025, investment €130 billion, but only 18% of it, colleagues, we buy together. And the result is extremely, extremely sad. We have long been committed to doing more. This is preceded by European Union programmes such as EDIP and EDIRPA. But still it is a story that we buy weapons separately, we use different military systems, we duplicate expenses, and in the end we really lose the potential that this could bring us economy of scale, our single market as the backbone of the European economy.

19

May

2026

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EU cybersecurity and preparedness in view of advanced AI systems (debate)

Madam President, Commissioner, Minister, artificial intelligence is no longer a distant possibility. It is already reshaping our economies, our democracies and our security, and powerful systems like Anthropic's Mythos or OpenAI's GPT-5.5-Cyber demonstrate both the extraordinary promise and the serious risks of frontier AI. This is urgent, dear colleagues. We have to equip ENISA with the tools necessary, and this is where we really need a dedicated AI cybersecurity strategy to counter those threats that are really threatening all aspects of our lives. AI models capable of advanced cyber operations should undergo mandatory safety testing, but before development, companies developing frontier AI must prove that their systems are secure, transparent and resistant to misuse. Certification schemes are necessary here. Second, the EU should establish strict safeguards for high-risk AI. Models with offensive cyber capabilities must not be freely accessible without oversight. And last but not least, Europe must invest in its own AI ecosystem. If we really entirely depend on foreign technology giants, we are risking losing our economic competitiveness and digital sovereignty.

10

Mar

2026

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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)

Dear Chair, I would like to start by thanking my colleagues that we have managed to adopt this semester's report this year, which in the end is not so simple and trivial in these circumstances. It is clear that the European Semester is indeed the most important instrument of fiscal coordination and its understanding is that Europe can only grow and develop together. And its recommendations should, however, be respected by the Member States, which should also make use of European funds, as these achievements have so far been sufficiently questionable. Today, it is particularly important, in my view, to talk about two things that we also mention in this report. Firstly, it is the coordination of defence spending to really contribute to our common defence capability. Its escape clause is a good thing, but it is not enough. We need to work more together. Secondly, it is expenditure on research and innovation, because if we really take their competitiveness in Europe seriously, then it would be a matter of focusing not only on the European Commission and the European institutions, but also on the Member States with their own budgets. Otherwise, we will continue to fall behind.

21

Jan

2026

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Attempted takeover of Lithuania’s public broadcaster and the threat to democracy in Lithuania (debate)

Mr President, dear Commissioner, this is really an issue of broader relevance. In this time of widespread social media manipulation, public broadcasters play an increasingly important role as a source of reliable information and quality debate. That is why it is important to condemn any attempts of the government, of any country, in this case in Lithuania, to undermine the independence of the country's public broadcaster. I am speaking from my own experience, which comes from Latvia, where the public broadcaster is also under political pressure constantly, especially from the far right. If a Member State takes actions that compromise the independence of a public broadcaster, it is not just a national issue; it is a breach of shared commitments, including the European Media Freedom Act. Public broadcasters are meant to be independent, not controlled. An attempted takeover, especially if driven by political actors, threatens editorial independence and objectivity, it threatens media freedom, it threatens the rule of law and it threatens democracy itself.

17

Dec

2025

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Cases of pro-Russian espionage in the European Parliament (debate)

Dear Chair, Dear Commissioner, Dear Minister, It is clear that Putin's Russia is ready to exploit any of our weaknesses against us. This applies to espionage, cyber-attacks and their information warfare. But the European institutions are still, I think, largely living in such a blissful ignorance. I think we all need to work on changing the culture of security itself. Lessons must be learned from the scandalous cases we have had in recent years, such as Members working here for Russia for years – the Zhdanok case was mentioned in 2024 – as well as, of course, cooperation with Russian propaganda media among Members. And, of course, also such clear cases of espionage among employees that have also occurred in recent years. Therefore, there are tasks that need to be done. Firstly, the Commission should work on cooperation between the security services of the Member States, moving towards a single European independent investigation capacity, directly to the institutions. The Council, for its part, must, in my view, work much more on the list of sanctions, both for individuals and for companies, which very often hide behind them as once Russian agents of influence in Europe. Because these are the tasks. Merry Christmas! Happy New Year!

16

Dec

2025

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Phasing out Russian natural gas imports and improving monitoring of potential energy dependencies (debate)

Madam President, dear commissioner, dear rapporteurs, today marks an important and necessary step forward for the European Union. Phasing out Russian gas is not only a response to Russian aggression and changing geopolitical reality, it is also a statement of our values and our priorities. By reducing our dependence on this external supplier, we strengthen our own security, resilience and unity. In the Parliament, we have chosen cooperation over coercion, sustainability over vulnerability, and long-term stability over short-term convenience. It will take serious work to implement this regulation properly, but this transition is also an opportunity. It accelerates investment in renewable energy, energy efficiency and – most importantly – diversified supply routes. It creates jobs, drives innovation and moves us closer to climate neutrality. Most importantly, it ensures that Europe's energy future is shaped by democratic choices, not political pressure.

25

Nov

2025

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European Defence Industry Programme and a framework of measures to ensure the timely availability and supply of defence products (‘EDIP’) (debate)

9

Sep

2025

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Strengthening Moldova’s resilience against Russian hybrid threats and malign interference (debate)

Mr President, dear colleagues, I want to thank you, Madam Commissioner, for helping Moldova on its way to Ukraine, especially in those fields of fighting hybrid warfare and disinformation, because Moldova belongs to Europe and Moldovan people have clearly demonstrated that. But this is also about our own strategic considerations: to lose Moldova to Russia would mean a big geopolitical loss for Europe and our own security. Moldova is a key partner in containing Putin's Russia. We have to be serious about that, and we have to draw our lessons from the Georgian experience, where Russia succeeded in organising the anti-European backlash with all the consequences. And right now, approaching elections, we have to do everything to show Moldovans that they are welcome in Europe and we stand with them.

18

Jun

2025

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Electricity grids: the backbone of the EU energy system (debate)

Madam President, Madam Commissioner, first of all, I want to congratulate Anna for an excellent report. To me, of course, the key part of that report is the resilience. We can't work on a single market for energy and electricity, we can't decrease prices for our citizens, if we do not think about the security of our networks. I think that two elements are equally important, and they are covered in the report. These are cyber and physical infrastructure. The number of cyber-attacks has increased and that's why the implementation of the NIS2 Directive and the Cybersecurity Act are really vitally important. And as for the physical infrastructure, the defence of our strategic infrastructure, especially undersea cables, in this age of growing offshore wind, is crucial. Security measures like sonar, like undersea drones, like sensors. The world is not secure anymore and our energy systems are targeted by unfriendly forces. Let's be aware of this and act accordingly.

21

May

2025

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Russian energy phase-out, Nord Stream and the EU's energy sovereignty (debate)

Mr President, Mr Commissioner, this initiative is really good, but of course, long overdue. Russia generated EUR 242 billion in fossil revenue in 2024 alone. This is more than it has spent on the whole war in Ukraine and in that sense I think we have to really stop financing Putin. I think the steps that have been proposed by the plan are really good. I mean, the ban on new contracts and existing spot contracts by the end of 2025, complete phase‑out of long‑term gas contracts by the end of 2027, and dealing with the shadow fleet, of course. But there is one important point I want to mention. This is what we really need: national phase‑out plans to enhance transparency and traceability of who is buying what and consuming what. If we do not do this, some Member States can still go on supporting Ukraine in words, but helping to finance Putin's war machine in deeds.

12

Mar

2025

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100 days of the new Commission – Delivering on defence, competitiveness, simplification and migration as our priorities (topical debate)

Dear Mr President, Dear Ms Virkunena, I very much like that in the title of today's debate, however, security and defence come first. And in that sense, I think we all have reason to be optimistic about this new ReArmEU a fund that means that Europe is gradually taking security seriously. Well, we are, of course, all waiting right now White paper. At the same time, there are two big questions that will determine whether this project will continue successfully or not. Firstly, it is a question of whether a change in the deficit conditions is really enough to motivate Member States to invest more in their national budgets for defence, also with this new total borrowing of 150 billion, or whether there is a need for other instruments, common funds. Secondly, how will Europe help to strengthen this common eastern border with the aggressor countries, with Russia and Belarus? There has been a lot of speech in this house that Putin's and Lukashenka's regimes are a threat to the whole of Europe and not just to a few Member States. Well, this belief should finally be strengthened by deeds.

22

Jan

2025

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Uniting Europe against actors hostile to the EU: time to strengthen our security and defence (topical debate)

Madam President, Madam Commissioner, as already noted this morning by Prime Minister Tusk, we should concentrate today not on guessing what the next steps of the new American administration could be, but what we ourselves can do in order to bolster our own safety and security. But let me ask you, what is the strength of the EU? It is not about commanding armies. We have NATO. Therefore it is our economic and technological might, our industry and our single market. And let's be clear, we are not exploiting it to bolster our security and defence to the full extent, because also the legislation is being delayed. In this case, the European defence industrial programme, EDIP, was published already almost a year ago, and the Parliament hasn't even properly started to work on it to promote defence and security, the defence industry and our single market in defence, which is really painfully lacking in the EU. Time is running out, dear colleagues: let's proceed from words to deeds at last. Let's help Ukraine and let's help ourselves.

21

Jan

2025

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Need to detect and to counter sabotage by the Russian shadow fleet, damaging critical undersea infrastructure in the Baltic Sea (debate)

Dear Mr President, Dear Ms Virkunena, It seems to me that for many colleagues in this house, Russian hybrid attacks are something new and unusual. This is not the case with us in the Baltic States. We have already seen this from Putin's repertoire, namely the instrumentalisation of migrants, the distortion of global navigation systems, which the representative of the Council has already spoken about, but also the strategic infrastructure, the cables that these shadow fleet vessels are destroying. I think that the instruments at our disposal now need to be used in full swing. First, all shadow fleet vessels – their owners must be included in the sanctions, and not only those 70. I think that there are also instruments for insurance in maritime law to stop such movements. And finally, the European Union and the Commission must also stand firm on the possibility of closing the Danish Strait if these ships threaten not only the ecology of the Baltic Sea, but also all our vital security interests and critical infrastructure. In other words, the solidarity-based and serious response now from the European Union, together with NATO, is the only one capable of stopping the aggressor.

27

Nov

2024

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Critical infrastructure vulnerabilities and hybrid threats in the Baltic Sea (debate)

Madam President, Commissioner, well, last week's attacks towards the C‑Lion1 cable between Finland and Germany, just like the earlier Balticconnector damages, these are the signals that we have to take these threats seriously. These are not separate incidents. These are the elements of continuous Russian hybrid warfare against our critical infrastructure. Right now, I think we have to send a clear signal that we know what is going on and who is standing behind that. Two points about how to address the threat come to mind. First of all, let's use our technological superiority. There is a lot of innovation going on in many European countries, in particular in my home country, Latvia, in undersea drones, sensors, monitoring. This has to be developed in the long term. The second issue is that let's keep open the possibility of the closure of the Baltic Sea as an option on the table. We need here a coordinated EU response, because we are dealing with a long‑term necessity to deter the Russian aggressor.

26

Nov

2024

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Reinforcing EU’s unwavering support to Ukraine against Russia’s war of aggression and the increasing military cooperation between North Korea and Russia (debate)

14

Nov

2024

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Enhancing Europe’s civilian and defence preparedness and readiness (debate)

Madam President, first of all, I just want to thank President Niinistö for the excellent and very timely report. I think tonight it was probably rather difficult because the most difficult thing was to treat Vladimir Putin like a natural disaster or a climate change, but nevertheless, it's accomplished. And what we can follow from this report, there are three points of action I want to mention. First of all, the European funds – the main instrument of the European Union – must be made available to strengthen our preparedness. Right now, let me remind you, colleagues, many European funds exclude not only military purposes, but also dual uses. This is about structural funds, Horizon Europe and things like that. The second thing is we really need to strengthen the EU-NATO interface, especially in cases of emergency, just like noted in the Niinistö report. And the third thing is that the EU budget is not enough to reactivate the European defence industry. We need to incentivise private investment to provide long-term perspective for the defence industry, and to help increase our competitiveness and our welfare.

23

Oct

2024

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EU actions against the Russian shadow fleets and ensuring a full enforcement of sanctions against Russia (debate)

Madam President, Mr Reynders, of course the activities of the shadow fleet is really a serious loophole in our sanctions policy. Let me remind you that the cap on Russian oil was introduced in September 2022. Now, more than two years later, it turns out that this cap is easily circumvented by the shadow fleet, which has been going on for all those two years. So what should we do right now? First of all, what are the countries that sell those uninsured ships to Russia? I think that Europeans deserve to know that, especially if we are dealing with a Member State. Secondly, we should use all the arsenal of international maritime law to prevent those ships from moving through our territorial waters. Especially, I'm talking about the Baltic Sea, which is particularly vulnerable to possible ecological disaster. Many of those steps have already been taken by the UK and the US. I think that Europe should follow suit as soon as possible.

22

Oct

2024

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Establishing the Ukraine Loan Cooperation Mechanism and providing exceptional macro-financial assistance to Ukraine (debate)

Dear Mr President, Dear Mr. Reynders, I would first like to thank our rapporteur, Karina, for finally having done so, namely by accepting this macro-financial assistance to Ukraine using Russian frozen assets as a guarantee. This is not only a financially very rational project, but also morally necessary, of course. Russia must pay today for the devastation caused to Ukraine because we must help it to strengthen its economic viability and also help it to defend itself militarily. But the 35 billion is, of course, large, but not really commensurate with Ukraine's current needs. That is why I will draw your attention to the fact that the oligarchs close to the Kremlin, who have profited and are still profiting from this criminal regime, still have very large assets, much larger assets in Europe. The Commission here should urge the Member States to take this very seriously and to think about what to do with these assets, even if the Member States have sometimes turned their eyes to such an active presence here.

21

Oct

2024

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Empowering the Single Market to deliver a sustainable future and prosperity for all EU citizens (debate)

Madam President, thank you, Mr Letta, for your excellent report. Well, of course, the single market is a strength of the EU: it's the main instrument. This is how we achieve our goals. But what are actually our goals today? Let me remind you that the Russian aggression in Ukraine is still going on. And the Russian attack on an EU country is possibly, still, a question of the nearest future. And that's why I really like the part in your report which deals with a common market for security and defence industries. This is a real necessity for the EU right now. Some 80 % of the military help to Ukraine is right now spent on non-European materials. But how to achieve that common market? European investment in defence is lagging. It is very seriously hindered by red tape, by excessive regulatory requirements, by fragmentation. There is an immense potential of a single market in defence industry, but one must have a political will to implement it – and quickly. Time is running out.

8

Oct

2024

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The democratic backsliding and threats to political pluralism in Georgia (debate)

Mr President, Madam Vice-President, dear colleagues, I think that the case of Georgia calls for reassessing our approach to the candidate countries as a whole. I'm talking mainly about the influence of authoritarian third countries. The EU has, unfortunately, often quietly observed the growing influence of Putin's Russia in countries like Georgia – but also in some other candidate countries, like Serbia – by means of corruption, by means of disinformation, by means of covert terrorist activity. Now, in the Georgian case, we have to move fast because elections are approaching in a few weeks. And the main task, I think, now is to send a clear message to the Georgian citizens: you can't be pro-EU and Putinist at the same time. Do not destroy your achievements. This is not just about candidate status or visa liberalisation. This is very much about the future of Georgia as a free, democratic and European country.

23

Apr

2024

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The use of Russian frozen assets to support Ukraine’s victory and reconstruction (debate)

Dear Madam President, Dear colleagues, Dear Commission, The damage caused by the Russian aggression in Ukraine is staggering. There alone, documented losses have already reached more than €400 billion and millions of Ukrainians have lost their homes and lives. Russia must be held accountable for these atrocities, and it is our duty here to ensure that Ukraine and its people receive compensation. To this end, we must first confiscate the approximately EUR 300 billion of Russian state assets in European accounts and transfer them to the international compensation fund. But that alone is not enough. It is quite clear that no less amounts than this are in the accounts of various Russian oligarchs who are still legally operating in Europe. We must not be naive and imagine that we are dealing with some simple entrepreneurs. These are people who owe their wealth to the Kremlin and have been acting as agents of the Kremlin’s influence for years, including by spreading disinformation and all sorts of ‘Russian world’ initiatives. These include propagandists, special service agents and people close to Putin's clique. Their assets are also to be frozen and transferred to the Ukraine Reconstruction Fund. That's what I wanted to say. Glory of Ukraine!

12

Mar

2024

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Need to impose sanctions on the import of Russian and Belarusian food and agricultural products to the EU and to ensure stability of EU agricultural production (debate)

Dear Mr President, Dear Commissioner, I think it is very strange that we are arguing here about the export of Ukrainian grain to Europe, but we cannot agree on a ban on imports from the aggressor countries, namely Russia and Belarus. The Commission says it is monitoring the situation. That is, in my view, completely insufficient. A common embargo is needed, not just monitoring. I will recall a few things. Every euro for Russia is the euro for the war, and these amounts have been increasing since the beginning of the war. Secondly, Russia is clearly dumping. She markets subsidised cereals and undermines the competitiveness of our farmers on the ground in Europe. And finally, of course, it is also a disinformation campaign to divide our support for Ukraine. The solution here is therefore an immediate embargo on the European entity and the victory of Ukraine.

28

Feb

2024

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Data collection and sharing relating to short-term accommodation rental services (debate)

Dear Madam President, Dear Mr Breton, I would say that short-term rental platforms are a very good example, first of all, of how Europeans can benefit from this digital economy. That is, both by renting properties and by renting them at a human price, for example, in front of large hotel chains. This is especially true, for example, for families with children, but of course this requires rules. There is a need for security about what you rent. There is a need for a clear exchange of data, especially already availability, availability of this data to our cities and municipalities. In this regulation, and here I can only say thank you to our rapporteur, Kim Van Sparrentak, this regulation strikes a good balance between, on the one hand, free competition and the necessary regulation. The next challenge is to further closely align all this legislation with our Digital Services Act, so that our digital legislation in all areas is coherent, understandable and also easy to implement and use in the Member States.

28

Feb

2024

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Regaining our competitive edge - a prosperous EU in a fragmented global economy (topical debate)

Dear Mr President, Dear Mr Breton, It is clear that restoring Europe's competitiveness is now a key thing for us to overcome those geopolitical challenges, and that is why I am very grateful to my colleague from Renew, Morten Løkkegaard, who has indeed given us clear orientations with this ten-point plan. I would like to focus on two things in the context of this plan. First of all, it is the implementation or enforcement Question 4 – How we implement European regulations and directives in the Member States, all from the Green Deal to the digital package now entering into force. What is really missing - fatally missing - is not a new initiative on the part of the Commission, but a uniform application and mutual harmonisation of the existing framework, and I therefore think that the idea of a new commissioner in the case of introduction should definitely be considered. The second thing, of course, is research and development expenditure. We can reach 3% in Europe already by 2027 if we want to. This goal has been set for a long time, but he unfortunately remains very utopian at the moment. This is a common European problem, where it is also up to the European institutions to encourage Member States to spend more on research and development.

6

Feb

2024

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Russiagate: allegations of Russian interference in the democratic processes of the European Union (debate)

Dear Madam President, dear colleagues, I think that the history of the twentieth century shows us all what happens when we allow our democratic institutions to be used for destructive, anti-democratic, totalitarian purposes. And it seems to me that our Member States have learned something from this, but the European Union as a whole looks like very little. I think that this recent case with this Latvian elected Member Ždanoka is really shouting in this regard. Not only has this honourable forum, the European Parliament, been used. European resources have also been used to spread Kremlin narratives, for example, to defamate the Baltic States over a long period of time, to justify aggression, to glorify de facto terrorist organisations that are now and have been occupying Ukraine since 2014. Do you really not know what to do here? How do we imagine that we will deal with anti-European governments in Europe – like Orban – if we do not deal with Russian agents in this house? That is why, in my opinion, this is the moment when we must still, during this mandate, initiate a thorough investigation into what has happened and, in the future, think about much more thorough scrutiny of Members, so that our democratic institutions are really shielded from the influence of malicious third countries.