What Isabel spoke about.

3

May

2022

PT Speech

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EU preparedness against cyber-attacks following Russia invasion on Ukraine (debate)

Mr President, the war in Ukraine and the cyber-attacks that preceded and accompanied it show the need for Europe to increase its capacity to protect critical infrastructure and respond to such attacks. Russia has shown the ability to carry out highly disruptive attacks and genuine disinformation campaigns, causing problems not only for the Ukrainian population, but also for the Member States of th…

6

Apr

2022

PT Speech

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Increasing repression in Russia, including the case of Alexey Navalny

Mr President, Putin has imposed on the Russian Federation a policy of persecution and extermination of political opponents, silencing of journalists and repression of all those who oppose him. The closure of organisations such as Memorial is a regrettable example of this. We call in this resolution for the release of the thousands of detainees following the peaceful protests against the war in Ukr…

5

Apr

2022

PT Speech

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Outcome of the EU-China Summit (1 April 2022) (debate)

Mr President, is dialogue and the search for understanding between the European Union and China important in building responses to global challenges? Yes, but unfortunately, with regard to last week's summit on sanctions following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which is a crucial issue, we only had a kind of two-voice monologue. To date, we have only received one declaration in favour of peace from…

5

Apr

2022

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Question Time with the Vice-President of the Commission/High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy - Security and the EU's strategic compass

High Representative, the mission determines the force, quite rightly so, and we have seen, within the framework of our security and defence policy, that our missions in scenarios, such as, for example, in Africa, Mali, the Central African Republic, are facing serious challenges that are posed by a Russian intervention, namely using a private company, Wagner. And I would like to know how this scena…

5

Apr

2022

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Question Time with the Vice-President of the Commission/High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy - Security and the EU's strategic compass

Mr President, the strategic compass is not a closed and completely detailed document. It would be impossible in view of its period of validity and at the time when we are being seriously questioned about what our future will be in terms of security and defence. However, there is a proposal that has raised some questioning in the military and even among public opinion, and it relates to the rapid d…

8

Mar

2022

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The deterioration of the situation of refugees as a consequence of the Russian aggression against Ukraine (debate)

Mr President, refugees have suddenly become our Ukrainian neighbours, and we are led to take swift action in the face of the brutality of the Russian aggression which, in a few days, has forced close to two million people to flee. A population on the move made up overwhelmingly of women and children, people in particular vulnerability, and which calls on us to meet the particular needs of protecti…

8

Mar

2022

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Foreign interference in all democratic processes in the EU (debate)

Madam President, over the years we have seen database piracy and disinformation and manipulation campaigns that threaten the competitiveness of our electoral processes and the legitimacy of our institutions. We have also seen radical political movements, some of them sitting in this chamber, financed through corruption schemes, money laundering, cryptocurrency and digital assets used in the servic…

16

Feb

2022

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EU-Russia relations, European security and Russia’s military threat against Ukraine (debate)

Madam President, the signs seem to announce a de-escalation of tension on the borders between Russia and Ukraine, but we cannot let our guard down. Let us have no illusions: Peace is not a given, it is a permanent construction that we have to take definitively into our hands. We do not turn our backs on the Atlantic Alliance, but we cannot have our security defined between Washington and Moscow. L…

15

Feb

2022

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Corruption and human rights (continuation of debate)

Mr President, corruption is a clear source of human rights violations and attacks on democracy that undermine the rule of law and institutions. As a global phenomenon, it must be tackled across all EU policies. Many cases of corruption have already been mentioned here, spread across a number of countries with which the European Union has ties. I would like here to recall the case of Azerbaijan, wh…

15

Feb

2022

PT Speech

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Human rights and democracy in the world – annual report 2021 (debate)

Madam President, following the presentation by the rapporteur, who I very much support and welcome for her excellent work, it is now appropriate that, at a time of great challenge to multilateralism, international law and democracy, we focus on what needs to be done so that these annual reports are not just a set of recommendations and that the European Union plays its full role in the promotion a…

19

Jan

2022

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Situation in Kazakhstan

Mr President, in a country like Kazakhstan, which has been gagged for three decades, with its freedoms cut off, dominated by a kleptocratic and corrupt regime that is perpetuated and marked by profound inequality, it was inevitable that the popular revolt would end up taking to the streets, as it had already done in 2011. Let's be clear, this is not new and was predictable. The disproportionate us…

19

Jan

2022

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Violations of fundamental freedoms in Hong Kong

Mr President, with the enforcement of the National Security Law in Hong Kong, Beijing has definitively broken with the concept of 'one country, two systems' and started a cycle of violence and repression which has so far resulted in more than 150 arrests. In his need to show strength before the crown princes of the Chinese Communist Party, Xi Jinping does not look to means. The mere exercise of fr…

16

Dec

2021

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Continuous crackdown on civil society and human rights defenders in Russia: the case of human rights organisation Memorial

Mr President, Memorial has a long history of defending human rights and also, unfortunately, of persecution by the Russian authorities. From extortionate fines, arbitrary arrests and charges, to intrusions by the police, Memorial, and those who work with her, has been the victim of numerous attempts at silencing and intimidation also under the infamous Foreign Agents Act with the ultimate goal of …

15

Dec

2021

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The proposed Council decision on provisional emergency measures for the external border with Belarus based on article 78(3) TFEU (continuation of debate)

Commissioner Schinas, this is truly one of those speeches that I would not like to have to make, but the reality obliges me to do so. Dictator Lukashenko instrumentalises migrants and refugees, and how does the European Commission respond? It aligns with the same tuning fork, responds with the closure of borders, suspends the asylum directive and tramples on the powers of the European Parliament e…

14

Dec

2021

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Cooperation on the fight against organised crime in the Western Balkans (continuation of debate)

Mr President, I would like to begin by congratulating the rapporteur on this important report on organised crime and the fight against organised crime in the Western Balkans, which must be seen by all of us with great responsibility and a strong sense of cooperation. The problem of organised crime and corruption does not only pose a threat to the Western Balkans: It also affects our countries, the…

14

Dec

2021

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Situation at the Ukrainian border and in Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine (debate)

Madam President, the increasing pressure brought about by the increase in the Russian military presence on the border with Ukraine at the gates of the European Union defies all limits. Respect for territorial integrity and the inviolability of borders are principles enshrined in the Helsinki Final Act which Russia clamored to violate when annexing Crimea. We can't admit any more provocations. Ukra…

21

Oct

2021

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The outcome of the Western Balkans summit (continuation of debate)

Mr President, Commissioner, Minister, I cannot at all share your words on the Western Balkans Summit. I'd very much like to share from your perspective, but I can't. From this summit came more financial envelopes, more beautiful words about the Western Balkans, but no real expectations, no real plan for the integration of these countries into the European Union. And this leads to tremendous fatigu…

19

Oct

2021

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EU-Taiwan political relations and cooperation (debate)

Mr President, strengthening political relations and cooperation between the European Union and Taiwan is of the utmost importance. Beyond the example of Tibet, Hong Kong and Macao, we have recently seen more demonstrations of the Chinese government's arrogance, with recent incursions by Chinese military aircraft into Taiwanese airspace. More than an intimidation, this is a tremendous provocation, …

7

Oct

2021

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The state law relating to abortion in Texas, USA

Madam President, what we are debating here today is not just the abortion law in Texas. It is the civilizational regression that strikes the model of our societies, and that strikes it in what is most sacred: the protection of human rights. Women's rights are human rights, dear Colleague Gahler. The decision to restrict the period for voluntary termination of pregnancy to six weeks, including in t…

7

Oct

2021

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European Union Agency for Asylum (continuation of debate)

Mr President, the moment we are marking here today is of special significance and is the first visible sign of the much-needed reform of the Common European Asylum and Migration System, for which we have been fighting for a long time. My first words are therefore to be appreciated, not only for the excellent work done by the rapporteur, our colleague Elena Yoncheva, but also, let me say, for the n…

5

Oct

2021

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The situation in Belarus after one year of protests and their violent repression (continuation of debate)

Mr President, one year on from the day the Belarusians took to the streets in protest there has been an endless series of arbitrary arrests, human rights violations, people subjected to torture and forced into exile abroad. To all this we add the hijacking of a plane to detain a journalist, the outlawing of the Helsinki Committee, the last human rights organisation operating inside Belarus, and an…

5

Oct

2021

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The future of EU-US relations (debate)

Mr President, let us get to the point: the Euro-Atlantic alliance remains irreplaceable in defending the rules-based world order and defending the values of democracy and human rights in the face of the rise and increase in assertiveness of powers and liberals. On the other hand, the withdrawal of the United States from Afghanistan without proper coordination with the European Union, and the AUKUS…

16

Sep

2021

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Government crackdown on protests and citizens in Cuba

Madam President, I repudiate the detention of numerous protesters, including activists, oppositionists and journalists, following the protests in Cuba and call for their immediate and unconditional release. Violations of human rights, freedom of expression, the right of association and demonstration must be combated in Cuba, as in any other part of the world. Having said that, we need to clarify w…

16

Sep

2021

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United States sanctions and the Rule of law (continuation of debate)

Madam President, the imposition of sanctions by the US administration on former Bulgarian civil servants and oligarchs for their involvement in the commission of acts of corruption is a meaningful position, reflecting the problems we face in the fight against corruption between Member States of the European Union, and therefore requires careful political reading by Parliament and the Commission. I…

14

Sep

2021

PT Speech

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Instrument for pre-accession assistance (IPA III) 2021–2027 (debate)

Mr President, the success of the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance is undeniable. This has been one of the main foreign policy levers for our neighbourhood and has contributed very positively to the accession countries, from the construction and rehabilitation of infrastructure to aid in cases of natural disasters, such as the reconstruction of the school park in Albania after the earthquake…