What Paulius spoke about.

Madam President, dear colleagues, Donald Trump won the elections. So should we Europeans feel lost in despair, cornered, and let Viktor Orbán do the talking? Are we going to watch, with gloomy faces, Orbán and Robert Fico popping the champagne? Please. The United States is a democratic country and has been our strongest transatlantic ally for decades. We have always stood together against tyrants. Trump is starting the tariff war against China. Europe is facing the same problem with electric cars, batteries and solar modules from China as well. But why should this tariff war spread between everyone in the world? Maybe we should proactively propose an economic alliance for the United States in this tariff war. We created an economic alliance in Europe: the European Union. Why not think of a real transatlantic economic alliance, the economic NATO?

Mr President, Commissioner, dear colleagues, Europe is in a vicious circle. We all knew it, but Mario Draghi clearly stated it: the king is naked. We are not competitive anymore. We lack innovation. But who creates innovation? The people. But we are in a big shortage of those people. First of all, the demography. We are dying out. Secondly, the immigration does not solve the problem of shrinking labour force and does not reduce the skills gap because the migrants do not necessarily meet the right skills portfolio. This debate should be a clear message to our educational sector as well. The universities and schools should provide more up-to-date programmes in accordance with the market demand. But, of course, I do not question the need for EU to invest more. Investment in our brightest people and their haute couture skills is a most worthy investment. The skills shortage is a growing barrier to innovation. We have talent, but not enough. Europe produces only 850 science, technology, engineering and math graduates per million inhabitants per year, compared to more than 1 100 in the United States. So, having this type of dynamics, the problems will eventually grow. Additionally to the direct solutions in the educational system, we should also have in mind the demography and targeted immigration policy. Dear colleagues, the developing artificial intelligence and its adaptation in various sectors will open problems in the labour market that we never faced. Let's be aware.

Madam President, dear colleagues, Europe is full. In parallel with a strategic and cautious integration policy – which is a long‑term solution – the only answer is fostering returns. We should be especially alert in the context of instrumentalised immigration. During Lukashenko's hybrid attack on Lithuania, Latvia and Poland, around 150 000 illegal crossings were registered in a short‑time slot, and these crossings were accompanied by the special forces of Belarus, which in some cases forced the migrants to enter the European Union using their brutal armed force. Any kind of further escalation is possible in such a context. Our countries faced a need for an urgent solution. We Lithuanians built a physical barrier on our own account in a record time, but what we really lacked was the common European‑wide approach to returns. The negotiations with third countries on admitting their nationals, for example Iraq, were complicated. Only together as the EU, we can do it. To demolish Schengen and to build walls between ourselves is not a European solution. To strengthen the external borders and to foster the return process, this is the answer.

Mr President, dear colleagues, we are talking about money here. I have a few questions for you. How much does a life cost? How much does one Ukrainian cost? Mother, father, daughter, son, sister, brother. Hundreds of thousands lost their lives in Ukraine. No billions can bring them back. Second question: why does the war last so long? Because we have been debating for too long; about tanks and F-16s, about support and sanctions. We are too slow. Third question: why do the sanctions fail to break the aggressor? Not only the third countries are to blame, but ourselves, because there are traitors and cheaters among us. And the question of today: can we use Russian frozen assets to pay the needs of Ukraine? We have to do it. We owe it to Ukrainians. We are in big debt because it is not our sons and daughters dying out there, dying for us. This is the least we can do to make Russia pay. Slava Ukraini!

Dear President, Dear Commissioner, Dear Colleagues. We Lithuanians love Kartvelians very much. I believe that the Kartwells love us too. This communion between peoples has accompanied us for decades, although it is not so easy to explain. After all, we do not have a common border, we are quite far from each other, but we feel each other. And I feel that most Kartvelian peoples are pro-European, they want a democratic and truly independent state. At Mikheil Saakashvili, Georgia had made significant progress both towards the creation of a true democratic state and towards the European Union. In Georgia has one big problem. The same thing we all have here. It is a neighbour of Russia. Have we forgotten that Georgia was attacked by Russia in 2008? While Abkhazia and South Ossetia are still being forcibly stripped of a sovereign state, Russia is holding the entire nation hostage by its influence, propaganda, manipulation and threats. I had to speak with the highest representatives of the Georgian government. They said: we understand, we want reforms and a pro-Western direction, but a hundred kilometers away there is a powerful enemy who has not once failed to attack us. The current Georgian government, as detailed in the resolution we are preparing, is taking a number of drastic steps backwards and the democratic situation in the country is worrying. However, it is very important to emphasize not without the help and influence of the Kremlin. We rebuke the Kartvelian authorities, we resent Russia's increased influence, and we urge them to distance themselves from Russia and impose sanctions. But it is Russia that is to blame for all the negative influence in the region, and the Kartvelian authorities are to blame for their failure to withstand. Believe in the people of Georgia. I wish the Kartvelians hope for an election. Thank you.

Mr President, Commissioner, dear colleagues, after the resurrection from COVID, the automotive industry of Europe faces new big challenges. And this is really painful because we were always leading industry in the world. Dear colleagues, if I would ask you to close your eyes and imagine a car of your dreams, I am sure that most of you would imagine the European brand. There are many obstacles. Commissioner Dombrovskis mentioned energy prices, labour market and raw materials. But I think there are more. First of all, China's technological invasion. But what bothers me most: the enormously high sustainability targets. The global warming is a major problem, but we cannot solve it alone. We have to have America, Asia, Africa on board. Here I would like to address one paradox. We are quite innovative and leading in some green solutions: wind power, hydropower, hydrogen technologies and others, except solar. But we ourselves are in much greater demand of these products – because of the goals – than the rest of the world. Hence, once again, we are consumers and not the producers. We massively import solar panels and Chinese electric cars. We trap ourselves in an economic greenhouse. More import than export. Dear colleagues, we can deal with China only if we stand united. The approach towards Chinese electric cars should be unanimous.

Mr President, dear colleagues, in my opinion, we cannot solve the problem with internal borders while not solving the issues on our external borders. The EU experiences almost 400 000 illegal crossings yearly. Immigrants hoping for economic benefits and trying to reach the EU's major economies first travel to the EU border states. Sometimes such states as Greece, Italy or, on the other side of the continent, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and similar, for them are just a stopover. Let us not forget the case of instrumentalised migration orchestrated by Lukashenko regime, when migrants made nearly 150 000 attempts to illegally cross into either Poland, Lithuania or Latvia. This proves that not only the southern EU countries, but also the northern eastern members require the EU's consent and action. I am convinced that the problem of internal border security cannot be examined disregarding the issues of the EU's external borders. Schengen was created to facilitate travel, trade and cooperation between Member States, and that is only possible by firstly properly controlling our external borders.

Madam President, dear colleagues, a year ago, the world was horrified by the unprecedented barbarism of the Hamas terrorist attack on Israel. I witnessed video footage from that tragic day and was shocked by the brutal reality. Hamas terrorists had complete disregard for human life and showed deep hatred towards random, innocent civilians, as if the terrorists were shooting at people on the streets and settlements, like in a violent video game – completely disconnected from any sense of humanity, ethics or morality. It is beyond comprehension. Our deepest condolences to those who have lost loved ones and to those still waiting for hostages who remain missing or in captivity. While a two-state solution remains a strategic goal, our immediate task is to stand united and work for peace in the region. The conflict has now escalated beyond Gaza, spreading to Lebanon and involving direct conflict with Iran. And what's next? Direct involvement of United States and other countries? And then what? Further escalation is not in Europe's interest.

Dear colleague, first of all, my condolences and solidarity with those who suffer. But still, do you agree that we cannot tackle this problem and solve this problem alone? We have to have on board America, Asia, Africa, and then we can solve the problem of global warming. Because alone we cannot do it, do you agree?

Once again, as your colleagues, you are convincing us that sending arms to Ukraine, supporting Ukraine, is a wrong pathway towards peace. But tell it to Mr Winston Churchill. Tell it to the millions who died in the Second World War protecting, defending and fighting back the aggressor. The only way to have peace is to fight back the aggressor.

Dear colleague, don't you understand that if we do not support Ukraine and Ukraine will lose, then Putin will not stop. And maybe the next year we will discuss here how to help Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Poland, Finland, Romania. Because Putin hasn't stopped. Do you want that?