Speeches

Madam President, some 20 years ago the great Ahmed Shah Masood visited this House, the European Parliament, and he was warmly welcomed. Now Commander Massoud led the heroic fight against both the Communist occupation and later against the Taliban in search of a better future, and he would have fought the Taliban regime today if it wasn’t for Osama bin Laden’s henchmen who killed Masood just two days before 9/11. But, dear colleagues, fortunately today, 20 years later, his son, Ahmed Masood Junior is leading the resistance against the Taliban regime, fighting for a better future. Now let us again invite Ahmed Shah Masood to this House, welcome him like we welcomed him 20 years ago, and work together with him on that better future in Afghanistan.

Madam President, what do hybrid threats, new threats, have in common, such as state driven disinformation campaigns, cybersabotage, election interference, economic coercion or large-scale intellectual property theft? What is it they have in common? Well, they are foreign policy objectives of both the Russian and also often the Chinese state. Their calculus of such operations is still low risk, low cost and high reward. Countering exactly that calculus, is at the centre of the current thinking in the European Parliament. But, that is only possible through an adequate response mechanism. So after a cyberdiplomacy toolbox – which I fully support – and a 5G toolbox, we believe it is time for a fully-fledged counter hybrid toolbox. Part of that toolbox must be that not only the injured state can respond, but also non-injured Member States. Collective countermeasures, acting in solidarity, will actually influence that Russian and Chinese calculus.