What Konstantinos spoke about.

21

Oct

2025

EL Speech

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Delayed justice and rule of law backsliding in Malta, eight years after Daphne Caruana Galizia’s assassination (debate)

Mr President, Commissioner, 35 years I have been a journalist, 35 years in this job. I ask a simple question: How far is Valletta from Rome and Rome from Athens? Eight years ago, Daphne was murdered. four years ago, in Athens, George Karaivaz; A few days ago, in Rome, there was an attempted homicide against investigative journalist Ranucci. How far away are our cities? The day before yesterday, jo…

20

Oct

2025

EL Speech

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The decision to impose a fine on Google: defending press and media freedom in the EU (debate)

Mr President, Commissioner, freedom of the press is at risk from the interventions of authoritarian governments in principle, we know that. The day before yesterday, journalist Nikos Aslanidis in Turkey, who is a member of the Union of Macedonia-Thrace Editors, was arrested, deported, not to say actually kidnapped. But press freedom is also at risk from tech giants' business models. In this case, …

7

Oct

2025

EL Speech

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Common agricultural policy (joint debate)

Mr President, Commissioner, if we evaluate the current Common Agricultural Policy, we will see its failure, because it is bureaucratic, bureaucratic, far from the immediate needs of small and medium-sized producers, with no link to farm productivity, with reduced resources and no clear direction. Its structure generates opacity, mismanagement, lost resources – not to mention the scandals, both in …

7

Oct

2025

EL Speech

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The EU’s role in supporting the recent peace efforts for Gaza and a two-state solution (debate)

Madam President, it is a difficult day today, a difficult anniversary, but, really, it all started two years ago or 70 years ago? We all agree here that the Israeli hostages must be released. Do we agree? All of them? Because we demand, as we demand, the immediate release of all civilians, of the civilians of peace arrested by the piracy of the war criminal Netanyahu, as we demand the immediate re…

10

Sep

2025

EL Speech

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Rule of law and EU funds management in Slovakia (debate)

Madam President, Commissioner, the situation in Slovakia comes down to the negative trend for the rule of law in Hungary, Poland, Bulgaria, Greece. This worries us deeply. There's one word I think we'll agree on: corruption. Corruption threatens democracy. The recent constitutional revision of the Slovak Government clearly threatens equality, the integrity of the administration of justice, while u…

10

Sep

2025

EL Speech

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Need for a strong European Democracy Shield to enhance democracy, protect the EU from foreign interference and hybrid threats, and protect electoral processes in the EU (debate)

Madam President, Commissioner, protecting European democracy from outside interference and information manipulation is necessary, undeniable and urgent. At the meetings of our special committee we have heard the Right with all its manifestations trying to turn the conversation elsewhere. There's an issue. But it is not a one-sided matter. There's an issue with Russia, that's clear. But is Russia t…

10

Jul

2025

EL Speech

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Post-2027 Common Agricultural Policy (debate)

Madam President, Commissioner, the strategic orientation of the common agricultural policy is very important for our farmers, for all citizens. For the distribution of European funds, I would not suggest that Mr Weber and you, Commissioner, request Mr Mitsotakis' conscientious software from Greece. The CAP is our main financing tool for food production. But for us, the Greeks, the European citizen…

8

Jul

2025

EL Speech

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2023 and 2024 reports on North Macedonia (debate)

Madam President, thank you very much for the cooperation, for this very nice work and I will come to the matter. Today we are discussing the report on the accession course of North Macedonia, which in itself is welcome good news, as the previous report never reached the plenary. The accession of the neighbour to the Union goes exclusively, I note, through the Prespa Agreement. It is an internation…

18

Jun

2025

EL Speech

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Freedom of assembly in Hungary and the need for the Commission to act (debate)

Madam President, Commissioner, we agree with your assessment. Children must be protected from intolerance, from fear, racism, fascism, from selective rights for the few, from corruption, from hatred. That's how we know, that's how I understand it. Not as an authoritarian government understands it. In the 21st century, you cannot say no to love or freedom or solidarity or inclusion. Mr Orbán is fra…

17

Jun

2025

EL Speech

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Two years since the devastating Tempi rail accident (debate)

Mr President, Commissioner, you have finally come to the European Parliament. The Left has worked hard to accept our request. Honestly, I wonder what the political forces that refused you wanted to protect you from. We denounce the exclusion of MEPs, and we denounce the exclusion of non-attached Members in this debate. Commissioner, the Commission was aware of what preceded the Tempi crime. He kne…

16

Jun

2025

EL Speech

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State of play and follow-up two years after the PEGA recommendations and the illegal use of spyware (debate)

Mr President, Commissioner, you have told us that we have done a very good job. Thank you very much. And what did you do with this job? That's the big question. In the last term we set up the committee of inquiry, we made findings, we worked a lot, and in 2025 we have Paragon in Italy. Let me inform you that the judicial investigation in Greece into the surveillance scandal through the Predator so…

21

May

2025

EL Speech

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The Hungarian government's drift to Russia-style repression: legislative threats to freedom of expression and democratic participation (debate)

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, this is not the first time and unfortunately it will not be the last time that we will be concerned about Mr Orbán's recidivist government, which is escalating authoritarianism in Hungary and is steadily moving away from democratic values. When we show tolerance, we get results like this. After the legal apartheid of the withdrawal of citizenship by political…

21

May

2025

EL Speech

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The EU's response to the Israeli government's plan to seize the Gaza Strip, ensuring effective humanitarian support and the liberation of hostages (debate)

Madam President, today the Europe of principles and values is indifferently watching the genocide of the Palestinian people by the war criminal, Benjamin Netanyahu. The far right and the right are trying to rewrite history. It all started last year. No, we do not have an occupying army and Israeli-occupied territories in Palestine. We have no deportees to Palestine. I am talking about genocide. It…

8

May

2025

EL Speech

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80 years after the end of World War II - freedom, democracy and security as the heritage of Europe (debate)

Madam President, 80 years since the end of World War II and 80 years since the great anti-fascist victory. Let us remember the causes. Let's reread the story; We must not rewrite history as interests demand, so that we do not repeat the same mistakes because this will constitute a crime in crime. Let us remember that the contradictions of capital in Europe and America strengthened, financed and gi…

7

May

2025

EL Speech

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The fine against TikTok and the need to strengthen the protection of citizens’ rights on social media platforms (debate)

Madam President, Commissioner, let us begin with the fundamental: The data belongs to us. The data belongs to the citizens. Secondly, social media is not just – as I have heard here – another market, a technological product or a problem – as I have heard from my conservative colleague. It is a public space, so we are clearly raising the issues of citizens' rights here. The Irish authorities were c…

7

May

2025

EL Answer

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High levels of retail food prices and their consequences for European consumers (debate)

I won't argue. I won't argue with you. To note just to know that the price of tomatoes in my own country, in Greece starts from 10 minutes from the field and arrives from the field and reaches the shelf 10 times more expensive. So we have both impoverished farmers and poor consumer citizens essentially. I think that what we call the basic control mechanism of the Union is needed here, because we h…

7

May

2025

EL Speech

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High levels of retail food prices and their consequences for European consumers (debate)

Madam President, Commissioner, thank you very much for listening to me. A few weeks ago, Mrs Metsola said here that "Europe must stand up today, or they risk ignoring it tomorrow". I agree. But there is also a saying in my country that says, "A fasting bear does not dance." In other words – to make it clearer – ‘stature’ also requires a full stomach. Instead, Europe-wide – after almost a century –…

2

Apr

2025

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Recent legislative changes in Hungary and their impact on fundamental rights (debate)

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, everything finally has its explanation. When you tolerate extreme anti-democratic behaviour within the Union, how will you condemn Mr Erdoğan, or when you have a hypocritical sensibility? The Orbán government is continuing to deepen authoritarianism in Hungary. It is systematically attacking democracy and human rights under the tolerance of the European leade…

31

Mar

2025

EL Speech

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Need to ensure democratic pluralism, strengthen integrity, transparency and anti-corruption policies in the EU (debate)

Madam President, first of all, we have heard here today that French justice is also being called into question. At the end of the day, you never get hurt. And in the European Union, the dust has just left Qatargate; and I recall for some who have forgotten that they were countries involved, officials, MEPs, as well as the Vice-President. The Chinese telephony scandal came vigorously, and before we…

12

Mar

2025

EL Speech

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Social and employment aspects of restructuring processes: the need to protect jobs and workers’ rights (debate)

Madam President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, restructuring goes with a hard legacy: We have 3,200 dead workers a year here, in the Europe of democracy, and we must take this very seriously, because the restructuring of businesses in the Union cannot be limited to strategies just to strengthen competitiveness, but must also prioritise the safeguarding of labour rights, jobs, with strong, ac…

12

Feb

2025

EL Speech

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Honouring the memory of Ján Kuciak and Martina Kušnírová: advancing media freedom, strengthening the rule of law, and protecting journalists across the EU (debate)

Madam President, as an ex-journalist, every day like this brings me sadness and anguish. We commemorate Jan and Martina today, not just today, every day. And Daphne and George Karaivaz, the dozens of journalists who lose their lives in the war zones, but also here in the European Union, in the countries of peace, in the Union of Peace. And while we honor the dead journalists, at the same time new …

11

Feb

2025

EL Speech

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Political crisis in Serbia (debate)

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, unfortunately Serbia is undergoing a phase of corrosive deregulation. Political and economic instability has peaked, corruption is galloping, and local authorities are deviating from fundamental democratic and juridical imperatives. Serbia, however, is a country with an accession perspective, that is, a country that we are committed to supporting in practice …

10

Feb

2025

EL Speech

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The Universal Declaration of Human Rights: the need for the European Union to contribute to resolving the humanitarian crisis of persons missing in wars and conflicts (debate)

Mr President, I agree with my Socialist colleague. We had asked in the previous term to become a foundation for the issue of missing persons. We demanded it and we were not listened to. We had asked for the flag of Cyprus to be raised for the 50th anniversary of the Turkish invasion, but we were not heard. I'm going to talk about Cyprus. Cyprus is the only occupied state of the European Union. Thr…

22

Jan

2025

EL Speech

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Presentation of the programme of activities of the Polish Presidency (debate)

Madam President, Prime Minister, I am really glad that you are here and I just want to say that when we caress the narrative of the far right, we strengthen its voice and that of the Alt-Right, even here in the European Parliament. And I think you understood it very clearly. I am sincerely pleased that the Article 7 procedure for Poland has ended since May and I really want to see Poland – the bel…

21

Jan

2025

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Need to enforce the Digital Services Act to protect democracy on social media platforms including against foreign interference and biased algorithms (debate)

Madam President, Commissioner, if things were going so well - because there is a lot of self-praise - we would not have the problems in Romania. Yesterday, however, we officially understood that the clock turned to 1935, from Mr. Trump's speech. We have the God-sent reviewer of history and his money propagandist, Mr. Musk. Finally, Mr Musk appears to have parliamentary representation here. So pass…