16
Jun
2026
Watch
2025 Commission report on Türkiye (debate)
Mr President, Commissioner, at the heart of the report on Turkey is ultimately the question of whether Europe can act strategically in its neighbourhood. Can we still see the woods from the trees? In July, NATO will meet in Turkey. Let's call it NATO 3.0. The first NATO held the Soviet Union in check, the second extended to the east, the third NATO must make Europe the mainstay of the alliance. NATO's mission has not changed: It's the Russian dam. It is already being done today, not only in the meeting rooms, but in the trenches of Ukraine. Ukraine is damping Russia on behalf of Europe with European support, weapons and money. At the same time, America's attention is gliding towards the Pacific. It does not weaken NATO's logic, it brightens it. The front line is ours, the threat is ours, the interest is Europe's. Therefore, a new form of membership needs to be created for Ukraine now: full access to defence, the economy and political cooperation. At the same time, it opens up a step towards a defence union for other European countries, in which Britain and Norway will also work alongside us, and perhaps one day a democratic Turkey.