Speeches

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, I was really looking forward to the debate today because I thought I would learn something. Once again, I have only heard conjectures and I am ashamed of all the colleagues who used the words ‘violation of the rights of national minorities, confiscation of land on the basis of ethnicity, confiscation of property’ here today. Or did you just succumb to propaganda? Or do you just need one fabricated purpose-built lie that you repeat here? This is not the case in Slovakia. I may surprise you, but there is a Constitutional Court in Slovakia. The president returns the laws to their legislature. The police even work there because they're investigating exactly the cases you're talking about. Like, what do you want more of? You just chose Slovakia because Robert Fico allows himself to travel the world, act without having to give him recommendations, and say his opinions because it's good for Slovakia and not for you. And that's why we're dealing with Slovakia again. You are hypocrites. Nothing more, nothing less.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, in recent years we have seen an increase in cyberbullying in all the Member States of the European Union. In the Czech Republic, the number of children who reported having faced cyberbullying in recent months has even increased by 4.2% in just 4 years. And we are not talking at all about cases where this kind of bullying is simply not admitted by children. I therefore believe that it is high time to address cyberbullying and the future of our children also at Union level, pushing social platforms and online games to enable easy reporting of bullying and blocking of bullying users, to prevent downloading and copying of images of underage users, to make children’s accounts automatically private and to finally start doing something about addictive design. At the same time, we must also respect the right of users, including children, to privacy and not require proof of identity for everything. Let's not let this issue become just another pretext for spying on all users. Cyberbullying, like any other type of bullying, is a problem that we must fight effectively and prioritize the mental health of children and others over the earnings of the owners of social networks and other services.

Madam President, after this debate, I wonder if there will ever be a situation where we stop pretending that building a stronger defence, that is, militarism, is the solution to all problems. We've been arming here for years. Look at how social programs have been cut across Europe over the past few years just to be on weapons, and how much the armsmen's fortunes have grown. What has been done over the years with arms? Nothing. The social scissors are opening up, diplomacy with states such as Russia, but also China, you have made a dirty word, and our alleged ally is able to threaten us with the seizure of territory. The problem, ladies and gentlemen, is not how many fighters and guns the army has. The problem is non-existent diplomacy, and yet this ever-failing strategy has not been remedied. We are still pretending that the additional billions in armaments are solving our problems. You have made a union of sovereign states into a union of arms companies, for which states and citizens are only cash cows. I call for a fundamental change in our diplomacy, for the ultimate burial of the sword. Dialogue is not a dirty word. Let's go back to him instead of playing Rambo according to the script of the arms companies.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, I am really glad that the issue of migration, the improvement of return policy and cooperation with third countries in this area are being addressed here in plenary. I understand that the migration pact also focuses on some of these areas, but I must stress that the migration quotas are clearly aggravating the situation and I consider it necessary for the European Parliament to call for the pact to be abolished and to retain only those parts that really strengthen our control over our borders. At the same time, the European Union needs to focus on finding partners where illegal migrants can be deported if the security situation in the country of origin does not allow them to be returned there. Just as Italy did with Albania and the UK did with Rwanda, so the EU as a whole should find partners for deportation needs. At the same time, let me deny that more opportunities for legal migration would be a solution to the situation. It is impossible to address the reluctance to pay decent wages to domestic workers by importing cheap labour. This is not really a solution to migration. We need strong borders and decent wages at home, not allowing borders to be circumvented to keep undignified wages at home.

Madam President, I am very sorry that I was late, and let me explain, ladies and gentlemen, why I could not vote today in favour of the binding 2040 climate target and why I think the whole vote is wrong. We are talking about competitiveness, we are talking about competitiveness, which we all know Europe is losing every year. It loses not only because it makes commitments that go against physics itself, but also because of huge bureaucracy. And instead of looking at it rationally, giving ourselves the opportunity, for example, in two or three years' time, to re-evaluate whether what we are here, or you have voted here, is really effective, you want to commit yourself here to goals that will only be another problem for Europe's industry, for agriculture and for making people's lives more expensive. I really thought we had learned our lesson, but what was voted on today means that we have not learned our lesson and that, unfortunately, Europe will only get worse.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, for 50 years the territory of a Member State of the European Union, Cyprus, has been occupied by a NATO member, Turkey. Hundreds of thousands of people lost their homes due to the Turkish occupation and entire cities had to be abandoned. And despite the European Union's condemnation, the situation in Cyprus is not improving and the end of the occupation and reunification of the country is still not approaching. Instead, the Cypriots have to listen to the talk that Turkey is a member of NATO, and that's why we have to sell it weapons, that we have to coordinate our defense with NATO and therefore with the occupying Turkey. Instead of European politicians dedicating themselves to ending the occupation of their own territory, there is more space for Ukraine. I hereby ask the Commission and the leadership of the Member States to put the issue of ending the occupation of Cyprus at the forefront of diplomatic communication with Turkey, so that people displaced from their homes can return, without the supervision of foreign soldiers, in a free united Cyprus. We don't have answers for the Cypriots. How can we forget them? So let's get up and start dealing with it. This is a state of the European Union and they have the right not to be occupied.

Madam President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, I would like us to fundamentally reconsider our approach and for the European Parliament delegation to go to Brazil, saying that it will prevent further deepening of poverty and the decline of Europe at the expense of other continents. What is the result of 30 years of international climate action, 10 years of a global treaty and trillions of euros of damage? Greenhouse gas emissions just reached new record highs in 2024. I'm asking here: What else can we do? I say: Nothing, we've done too much. Now it's the rest of the world's turn. We no longer need to adopt other nonsensical binding targets for reducing CO2 emissions.2 for 2040, as some here are trying to tell us. Brazil's idea of creating a new UN body to speed up the implementation of the COP decision is a complete mockery. It will only cost more money to create another unnecessary body, through which, in the end, only the money of our citizens, which is needed at home, will flow. Let's stop this while there's still time.

Mr President, I must say that, unlike my colleagues, I am very happy that the planned summit between the Presidents of the United States and Russia is to take place in Budapest, on the territory of a Member State of the European Union. Throughout the brutal war in Ukraine, this is the first really big signal coming from a Member State of the European Union that we also want to stop the bloodshed and the ceasefire. Until now, the EU has acted as if war suited it. I understand why it suits the armourers. People who die have money. But I would expect politicians, whether national or European, to stand on the side of their citizens, rather than trying to maximise the profits of the armourers, despite the risk of escalation of the conflict. I thank Hungary for at least seeking peace in this conflict, and I strongly condemn the attempts of some other politicians to sabotage the summit and the ceasefire negotiations in Ukraine. Enough people have fallen for the interests of armaments companies, now it is often to end it. I hope that both the US and Russian presidents will act with a sincere interest in ending the conflict without ulterior interests, and I hope that, despite the massive arms lobby, the summit will be a success.

Madam President, the last steps of the two Commissions led by Ursula von der Leyen have led to an increase in the prices of energy, fuel, heating, food, in short, everything one can remember. The quality of life of ordinary citizens is stagnating and in some cases even deteriorating. President von der Leyen and her Commission have put the European Union and its citizens right in front of the gap and now intend to take a big step forward. ETS 2 is designed to make everything more expensive for citizens. And why? So that the already full wallets of speculators become a little more full. I think the recent elections in my country clearly show that citizens do not want ETS 2. The overwhelming majority of votes went to those who explicitly reject ETS 2, and I hope that the new government will not bow its back to the Commission. Other countries, such as Slovakia and Poland, also refuse allowances. Please listen to them too. Let us not introduce ETS 2, but let us radically reconsider the old ETS 1. These measures are not about protecting nature, but about redistributing property from ordinary people to speculators. That's what we call it – enough!

Colleague, I have two questions. One is whether you will support our FARA law if you know that someone else is funding it. Will you support him here in the European Parliament, so that it is finally clear who is funding whom? And secondly, when you say who's funded by whom: How many criminal complaints have you filed and how many times have you reported that someone is actually being funded? Because otherwise, you were just talking to your media again, instead of telling the facts. And I do not think a Member of the European Parliament is really worthy of that.

Madam President, if we are to talk about the protection of democratic electoral processes within the European Union, let us finally talk about the transposition of the directive on transparency of interest representation from abroad, that is to say, on the registration of foreign agents. Transparency is the best weapon against foreign interference, not censorship and misinformation, which the European Democracy Shield and the newly planned European Centre for Democracy Resilience, announced today by Ursula von der Leyen, will serve and serve. Democracy is not the abolition of elections if a candidate of the opposition wins one round and his victory is tempted by interference from abroad, as was the case in Romania. Let's finally show who's behind whose money, and let's leave the decision to the citizens. Our democratic electoral processes have long been threatened by money from oligarchs, corporations, NGOs and interest groups in Europe and beyond, not by TikTok videos. I ask that we really protect democracy, not suffocate it.

Mr President, Commissioner, according to the reports so far, it seems that a trade agreement with the United States is not on the horizon, even though the US President has just praised how well Ursula von der Leyen and the people of the Commission have treated him. It is no surprise to me that the Commission is treating the President of the United States very well. For me, the main thing is for the European Commission to start behaving nicely towards European citizens. Accepting 10% tariffs on all products is a 5% increase in average tariffs, and our industry and citizens will simply pay the price. I understand that not everything can change the opinion of the US administration and that the agreement that we will have to accept will not be the ideal solution, but we are responsible for selecting our trading partners. So let's try to make the best deal possible with the United States, but at the same time let's look for partners elsewhere in the world without talking or interfering in their internal affairs. It is better to have several real partners than one master, for whom we are a slapstick and to whom we must behave nicely.

Mr President, Commissioner, according to the reports so far, it seems that a trade agreement with the United States is not on the horizon, even though the US President has just praised how well Ursula von der Leyen and the people of the Commission have treated him. It is no surprise to me that the Commission is treating the President of the United States very well. For me, the main thing is for the European Commission to start behaving nicely towards European citizens. Accepting 10% tariffs on all products is a 5% increase in average tariffs, and our industry and citizens will simply pay the price. I understand that not everything can change the opinion of the US administration and that the agreement that we will have to accept will not be the ideal solution, but we are responsible for selecting our trading partners. So let's try to make the best deal possible with the United States, but at the same time let's look for partners elsewhere in the world without talking or interfering in their internal affairs. It is better to have several real partners than one master, for whom we are a slapstick and to whom we must behave nicely.

Madam President, since 2021, electricity and gas prices have risen unbelievably, along with food prices. Around 93 million Europeans are at risk of poverty or social exclusion. What will the EU do? How do we want to solve this problem? We will come with ETS 2 to make life even more expensive for our citizens. Let the people who often live from paycheck to paycheck pay even more for fuel and heating. People are not your slapstick, and many Member States are already opposing the introduction of this system in its approved form. Be aware of the situation and do not take measures to liquidate household wallets in the name of climate protection. But I would like to mention that nowadays it is popular to point fingers and blame others. I am not really in favour of this ghastly Commission, which must be called off, but how hypercritical it is to criticize ETS 2 from members of Czech government parties. You approved ETS 2, applauded the system during the Presidency. It is above all your fault and you deserve to end up like the Commission.

Madam President, colleagues, are you satisfied with yourself? For over a year and eight months, you have had the opportunity to stop the genocide that Israel is committing in Gaza, as the Israeli army is dependent on weapons and funds from the European Union. But you didn't do it. You've been overlooking how Israel shoots people, goes to pick up help, murders journalists and paramedics, and burns civilians alive in refugee camps. Now, thanks to support from Europe, Israel could invade Iran. You allowed the prosecuted war criminal Netanyahu to unleash more bloodshed just to stay in power. German Chancellor Merz then directly glorifies Israel's war crimes and claims that Israel is doing our dirty work for us. I am ashamed of Europe. I hate that the EU is actually supporting the Palestinian genocide instead of stopping it. And I ask you, let us not participate further in these atrocities, let us impose an arms embargo on Israel and suspend the Association Agreement and force Israel to stop genocide and aggression against other states.

Mr President, I must say that the European Parliament has been more like Kocourkov for some time now. Nord Stream provided cheap gas supplies, and instead of discussing reviewing the insidious attack on both Nord Stream 1 and 2 and discussing restoring gas supplies to lower prices for our citizens and industry, we are discussing other barriers to supply from Russia, to deepen the electricity price crisis again and import more overpriced American gas or buy Russian gas for more money. But even more bizarrely, we are talking about Europe's energy self-sufficiency. Right now, France and Commissioner Séjourné are successfully blocking the completion of the Dukovany nuclear power plant in the Czech Republic. Instead of cooperation, which this Union should support, it deliberately harms our economy and energy sovereignty of the Czech Republic and the Union only because the South Korean KHNP won the tender for completion instead of the French EDF. And all this in addition to long-term discrimination against nuclear energy, even though it meets all green standards. I call on the Commission, Mr Séjourný and anyone else, not to pressure the decision-making of the Czech authorities and not to side with the French company against the citizens of the Czech Republic and energy sovereignty itself.

Mr President, the CBAM is a key tool to ensure a level playing field for European producers facing unfair competition from third countries. The proposed simplification of CBAM rules is generally a step in the right direction, but the main problem of CBAM from the outset is its interaction with WTO rules. In order for CBAM to be truly effective and to protect European industry from unfair external competition, it is necessary to overcome concerns about the WTO. In the end, it seems that the EU will be the only one not to protect its domestic production and will continue to support production elsewhere due to strict and often overly strict compliance with WTO rules. While we protect the production of other countries, in our country metallurgical plants are closing one after another and the automotive industry is collapsing. What has driven European prosperity for decades, we are unable to protect. There are units and states that can defend themselves and defend their prosperity. And unfortunately, we still can't manage it, and I don't see the will to change.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, food prices are rising to heaven. And who does that fall on? To the most vulnerable! As we speak, thousands of families in Europe are asking what they will put on the table tomorrow. And what do we hear from commissioners and ministers? Assurance that everything is fine, that prices are stabilizing. It's just a mockery! It is unacceptable, for example, that food prices in Czechia reach the level of Germany, while the average wage in our country is still significantly lower and, unfortunately, real wages are still at pre-COVID-19 levels. I therefore appeal to the Council and the Commission: It is not enough to analyze the situation, we need concrete steps. We need to rapidly reduce energy prices as a basic input for both farmers and food producers, support European farmers, reduce imports of low-quality raw materials and food from third countries outside the EU, reconsider provisions Green Deal, which will mean further increases in prices. Furthermore, we must massively deregulate the senseless administrative burden. To date, Europe is still a continent of two speeds, where some have full tables and others have nothing in the mouth. And that's what we call: “Enough!”