What Andrius spoke about.

18

Oct

2023

EN Speech

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A true geopolitical Europe now (topical debate)

Madam President, the European Union is hit by two geopolitical crises: Russia’s war against Ukraine and Hamas’ attack against Israel. The reason of the first crisis is our geopolitical mistakes in the past. Ukraine was left in the grey zone of geopolitical security without clear perspective of integration towards the West. If the EU wants really to play an important geopolitical role worldwide, fi…

18

Oct

2023

EN Speech

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The despicable terrorist attacks by Hamas against Israel, Israel’s right to defend itself in line with humanitarian and international law and the humanitarian situation in Gaza (debate)

Mr President, dear colleagues, it is not enough to say that Israel has the right to defend itself. Our position should be very clear. Hamas needs to be destroyed and eliminated as a terrorist organisation. That should be done not only by Israel but by all the democratic community. There is no other way. Like was done with ISIS and al-Qaeda. Second, in our war against terrorism, the life of civilia…

17

Oct

2023

EN Speech

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Effectiveness of the EU sanctions on Russia (debate)

Mr President, dear colleagues, the fact is that Russia still is able to continue and to finance its war against Ukraine. Russia recently announced that in 2024 its defence budget will be increased by nearly 70% and will reach EUR 107 billion. From the very beginning of the war, we introduced sanctions on Russian oil and gas exports, as the major source of Russian financial income. First of all, of…

16

Oct

2023

EN Speech

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Establishing the Ukraine Facility (debate)

Mr President, dear colleagues, today we are discussing one of the most important European Union geopolitical initiatives. I can just congratulate the Commission on the proposal to establish a Ukraine facility and to allocate EUR 50 billion for the period of 2024-2027. But as the Commission put into explanatory notes, there will be a need of EUR 384 billion during the next 10 years. That is why a f…

3

Oct

2023

EN Speech

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Taking stock of Moldova's path to the EU (debate)

Mr President, dear colleagues, Moldova is not only the country which is showing great strength in reforming itself, in building a successful democratic country, but also is a litmus test for us, for the EU itself. It’s obvious that Moldova and Ukraine deserve to be invited at the end of this year to start negotiations for the membership in EU. That would be the major step forward and that is neede…

3

Oct

2023

EN Speech

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Situation in Nagorno-Karabakh after Azerbaijan’s attack and the continuing threats against Armenia (debate)

Madam President, I will not repeat what others have said, but I would like to stress that the future of democracy in Armenia is at stake and is deliberately targeted by the Kremlin with assistance of Azerbaijan and partly by Turkey. That is why the EU needs to show its unwavering support to the democratically elected Pashinyan government, which clearly is making steps to distance Armenia from Russ…

12

Sep

2023

EN Speech

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Relations with Belarus (debate)

Madam President, dear colleagues, the free choice of Belarussian people has been stolen by Lukashenko and freedom is denied. But even in such circumstances, Belarusians are making very important choices on their future. In August, the meeting of ‘New Belarus’ opposition community under the leadership of Sviatlana Tikhanovskaya has made a very important declaration on the membership of Belarus in t…

12

Sep

2023

EN Speech

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Ukrainian grain exports after Russia’s exit from the Black Sea Grain Initiative (debate)

Madam President, dear colleagues, according to it’s association agreement and the Commission decisions, Ukraine has the legal right to sell its goods in the single market of the European Union. EU Member States have the legal obligation not to create artificial obstacles for Ukrainian goods, including grain, to enter single market. There are also our moral obligations to Ukrainians, who are defend…

13

Jun

2023

EN Speech

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Question Time (VPC/HR) - Relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan and the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh and at the Lachin Corridor

High Representative, as you have mentioned, the issue of relations in between Armenia and Azerbaijan is really very complicated. We have seen two wars. One was won by Armenia, then Azerbaijan was complaining that territories are occupied; now it’s won by Azerbaijan. Of course, there is still a lot of pain. So that is why really I would like to use this opportunity to praise Armenian Prime Minister…

13

Jun

2023

EN Speech

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Humanitarian and environmental consequences of the destruction of the Nova Kakhovka dam - Sustainable reconstruction and integration of Ukraine into the Euro-Atlantic community (debate)

Mr President, dear colleagues, let me be blunt: the war was started not only because Putin is a criminal aggressor, but also because of our great strategic geopolitical mistakes in the past. The biggest mistake was to leave Ukraine for long decades in the grey zone, without clear membership perspective in NATO or European Union. That created temptation for Putin to imagine that both NATO and the E…

10

May

2023

EN Speech

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Ukrainian cereals on the European market (debate)

Madam President, dear colleagues, let’s talk straight. All the complaints about Ukrainian cereals, it has very little to do with Ukraine itself. Let’s be clear: the European single market was opened for export of Ukrainian cereals one year ago. A year ago, the EU also decided to open transit solidarity lanes for Ukrainian grains when Russia closed traditional transit through the Black Sea. Most of…

19

Apr

2023

EN Speech

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Repression in Russia, in particular the cases of Vladimir Kara-Murza and Alexei Navalny

Madam President, dear colleagues, there is no need to explain who Vladimir Kara-Murza is and what the Kremlin regime is doing with him when they put him into prison for 25 years because he was criticising the Kremlin’s war against Ukraine. I know Kara—Murza personally. I admired his fight for Global Magnitsky sanctions legislation, for democracy in Russia, for a different, for a normal Russia. Wit…

19

Apr

2023

EN Speech

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Children forcibly deported from Ukraine and the ICC arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin (debate)

Mr President, dear colleagues, it is so important that the ICC issued an arrest warrant to President Putin with suspicions in this terrible war crime of children deportations. Not only the ICC, but also a special tribunal for crime of war aggression should do its job of justice. For that reason, a special tribunal should be established without delay, and the EU needs to play a leading role in impl…

29

Mar

2023

EN Speech

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Order of business

Madam President, dear colleagues, I would like to use this opportunity to remind us that on 17 March, two weeks ago, the International Criminal Court issued the arrest warrant to President Putin for the war crime of the unlawful deportation of Ukrainian children. Let us congratulate the ICC with this very important decision. Ukraine really deserves international justice against the inhuman and cri…

14

Mar

2023

EN Speech

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The challenges facing the Republic of Moldova (debate)

Well, first of all I know that the Government of Moldova is doing great reforms in order to become not only a candidate country but to start negotiations and to become a member of EU. That is not only in the interests of Moldova, but also of us. And that is why we need to give all the support which is needed. And since Moldova really is facing different challenges, including energy and budgetary o…

14

Mar

2023

EN Speech

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The challenges facing the Republic of Moldova (debate)

Mr President, it is very clear that Kremlin is afraid of success of democracies in Ukraine and Moldova, because those successes can inspire Russian people to seek the same democratic development in Russia itself. That is why autocracy of Kremlin started military aggression against Ukraine and continuous hybrid aggression against Moldova. Kremlin is using oligarch Prigozhin, who is spending dirty m…

14

Mar

2023

EN Speech

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Situation in Georgia (debate)

Mr President, dear colleagues, we know very well how strongly the Georgian people want to join the EU. But today, Georgia as a State has a problem on the way to achieve such a strategic goal. And that problem has the name of Bidzina Ivanishvili. Unfortunately, formal and informal authorities in Georgia are united in their tactics to deliberately create new and new problems on that path of integrat…

14

Mar

2023

EN Speech

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This is Europe - Debate with the President of Lithuania, Gitanas Nausėda (debate)

Madam President, Your Excellency Mr President, dear colleagues, I would like to welcome the President of my country in this House, which in the European Union has the strongest institutional adherence to European values of democracy, human rights, liberty, solidarity and respect to dignity of each human being, despite what is his or her colour of the skin, and what is his or her sexual or politica…

15

Feb

2023

EN Speech

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The recent deterioration of the inhuman imprisonment conditions of Alexey Navalny and other political prisoners in Russia

Madam President, I hope that everybody knows that since his arrest, Navalny has been subject to ill treatment, including torture, arbitrary punishment and psychologic pressure, including sleep deprivation and lack of medical care. Recently, as all of us have been informed, Navalny was moved to a ‘penal confinement cell’. His lawyers report his deteriorating health. Alexei Navalny was not allowed t…

15

Feb

2023

EN Speech

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One year of Russia’s invasion and war of aggression against Ukraine (debate)

Mr President, this war can be stopped tomorrow if Mr Putin will decide to withdraw his troops from Ukraine. However, since it is not realistic, the only way to end this international crime is to defeat Russia in the battlefield. The first year of a brutal war has shown that the combination of highly motivated Ukrainian defenders and the Western weapons are much stronger than the Russian military c…

2

Feb

2023

EN Speech

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Preparation of the EU-Ukraine Summit (debate)

Madam President, dear colleagues, the keys to a sustainable peace on the European continent are in the hands of Ukraine. Sustainable peace in Europe is possible only if Russian people will transform their country back to democracy, because democracies are not fighting each other. The West needs to have a strategy of how to assist such a transformation. First of all, Russia needs to be ‘deputinised…

17

Jan

2023

EN Speech

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The establishment of a tribunal on the crime of aggression against Ukraine (debate)

Madam President, dear colleagues, if we want peace, those who are destroying peace should be punished, in a heavy way. Justice is needed not only for Ukrainians. Justice is needed for all of us. Justice is needed for peace. Such justice cannot be delayed, since justice delayed is justice denied. There are three types of crimes during the war: war aggression as such; war crimes as in Bucha; and cri…

17

Jan

2023

EN Speech

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The EU’s response to the appalling attack against civilians in Dnipro : strengthening sanctions against the Putin regime and military support to Ukraine (debate)

Madam President, dear colleagues, what we witnessed in Dnipro is pure and simple state terrorism. This terrorist attack reminded me of another terrorist attack on 11 September 2001, when Al-Qaeda attacked and destroyed the Twin Towers. I do not see any difference between those terrorist attacks and the aims of terrorists. I see only a big difference in how the West was and is reacting. In my view,…

17

Jan

2023

EN Speech

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

Madam President, I say to the Prime Minister and my dear Swedish colleagues: first of all I would like to congratulate the Swedish Prime Minister for such a clear statement on Ukraine, on Ukraine being a major strategic priority for the Swedish Presidency. And I would like to stress the importance of just a few points of this broad Ukraine agenda. It would be very important that during Swedish Pre…

15

Dec

2022

EN Speech

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The humanitarian situation in Ukraine due to Russia’s attacks against critical infrastructure and civilian areas (debate)

Madam President, colleagues, Commissioner, of course, the best humanitarian assistance to Ukraine would be more arms deliveries – guns, guns, guns – because this is the only way this war can be ended in the near future. And the war brings humanitarian catastrophe to all the people of Ukraine. I would like to make just two comments on the humanitarian assistance issue, and what we need to do as the…