What Yannis spoke about.

8 Oct

2026

EL Speech

Escalations in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Aegean following persistent Turkish provocations (debate)

Watch

Mr President, Mr Vice-President, to every written question I put about Turkey's provocations, the Commission's response is firm and permanent. "The Commission shall defend the interests of the Union and of the Member States". Oh, good. However, Turkey's provocations continue. First, 2,000 violations of Greek territorial waters by July alone. Second, 646 violations of Greek airspace. Third, the con…

15 Sep

2026

EL Speech

Escalation in the Middle East (debate)

Watch

15 Sep

2026

EL Speech

Defence (joint debate)

Watch

Madam President, Commissioner, I would like to begin by thanking the rapporteurs for the very good cooperation. During the negotiations on the revision of the two directives on intra-EU transfers and defence procurement, the Council’s reluctance to understand the new geopolitical environment in which we find ourselves unfortunately emerged. It blocked any substantial change proposed by the Commiss…

8 Jul

2026

EL Speech

The EU’s role in the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip and the accountability of Israel under international law (topical debate)

Watch

Mr President, the official ceasefire in Gaza was agreed last October, but in fact the war is still going on today. The blows never stopped. Humanitarian access continues to be hampered and the majority of its inhabitants remain displaced. At the same time, the situation in the West Bank is deteriorating. In 2026, settler violence reached unprecedented levels. New illegal settlements, destruction a…

16 Jun

2026

EL Speech

2025 Commission report on Türkiye (debate)

Watch

Madam President, once again Turkey is moving away from European principles and values. This is happening both inside the country and in its foreign policy, where it continues to provoke and violate the sovereign rights of two Member States, Greece and Cyprus. Airspace violations are constantly escalating. In May alone, there have been three incidents involving eight armed Turkish warplanes that vi…

16 Jun

2026

EL Speech

The role of the EU in efforts for peace and stability throughout the Middle East after the announced deal between the US and Iran (debate)

Watch

Madam President, High Representative, the situation in the Middle East remains flammable, despite this weekend's Iran-US agreement. The attacks on Iran not only did not bring the desired results for President Trump, but instead destabilized the wider region, the global economy and strengthened the Iranian regime. Israeli attacks on Lebanon are destabilising his government, while uncontrolled settl…

29 Apr

2026

EL Speech

EU strategy in response to the ongoing Middle East crisis, its implications on energy prices and the availability of fertilizers (joint debate)

Watch

28 Apr

2026

EL Speech

Supporting democratic resilience in Armenia (debate)

Watch

Madam President, Commissioner, as the European Union, we must assist the Armenian authorities so that the upcoming elections are free and fair, facing any attempt to influence them from third countries. Unfortunately, we have seen this happen many times both in third countries and even within the European Union. At the same time, we must ensure that the government does not take advantage of its po…

28 Apr

2026

EL Speech

The Commission’s 2025 Rule of Law report (debate)

Watch

Mr President, two months ago a court in Athens confirmed in a judgment that the government of New Democracy in Greece had set up a parastatal mechanism of illegal surveillance at the seat of the government, at the Maximos Mansion. Half of the ministers, the leadership of the armed forces, politicians, journalists, businessmen, were all under surveillance, both by the National Intelligence Service …

25 Mar

2026

EL Speech

Energy security, independence and supply in the geopolitical context - ensuring market stability and affordable energy for industry and citizens (debate)

Watch

Mr President, Commissioner, international crises are constantly highlighting the Union's long-standing dependence on imported energy sources and technologies that expose it to geopolitical blackmail. As a result we have: high prices for domestic and industrial consumers, especially in regions such as Southeastern Europe and Greece, low competitiveness and energy poverty, as well as los…

25 Mar

2026

EN Speech

Order of business

Watch

Madam President, we believe that the circumstances require to have a more comprehensive debate on what is happening in the Middle East, and not to limit ourselves in just one of the very worrying developments in the area. Therefore, on behalf of the S&D Group, we would like to propose the following title for the debate, 'The worsening Middle East escalation in light of Israel's planned security zo…

12 Mar

2026

EL Speech

Rail transport safety in the EU – lessons learnt from the Adamuz accident and three years after the Tempi tragedy (debate)

Watch

Madam President, Commissioner, two weeks ago it was three years since the Tempi tragedy, a tragedy that shocked Greece. A tragedy that could have been avoided if the government had done its job and completed contract 717 for telecommand. A contract that was signed in 2014 and should have been completed in 2016, seven years before the tragedy. Commissioner, it is for this very reas…

11 Mar

2026

EL Speech

Situation of the rule of law in Greece, following the Court decision on Predator spyware (debate)

Watch

11 Mar

2026

EL Speech

EUCO and situation in the Middle East (joint debate)

Watch

10 Mar

2026

EL Speech

Tackling barriers to the single market for defence - Flagship European defence projects of common interest

Watch

Madam President, Commissioner, one of the important positive messages of the last crisis is the practical European solidarity of the Member States with Cyprus, which is facing the consequences of the military operations of the United States and Israel in Iran. With our two reports today as the European Parliament, we are putting forward a roadmap to strengthen defence cooperation. Completing the s…

10 Mar

2026

EL Speech

Presentation of the Energy Package (debate)

Watch

Mr President, Commissioner, over the last decade the European Union has tried to increase the active participation of consumers in an increasingly liberalised and decentralised energy system. However, the objective of placing consumers at the heart of the energy market remains largely unfulfilled. At the same time, energy prices in Greece and Europe continue to burden them relentlessly, increasing…

11 Feb

2026

EL Speech

Targeted expulsions of foreign journalists and foreign Christians in Türkiye under national security pretexts

Watch

Mr President, this is not the first time that we have been discussing human rights violations in Turkey and I am afraid it will not be the last. As for the problems faced by Christians in Turkey, these are detailed every year in the annual progress report. Since 1971, the Theological School of Halki has been closed by decision of the Turkish state. The Turkish state continues to prohibit the use o…

11 Feb

2026

EL Speech

State violence in Minneapolis and the rule of law in the United States (topical debate)

Watch

Madam President, Euro-Atlantic relations have been strong because they have hitherto been based on common principles and values – democracy, the rule of law, the protection of human rights, multilateral cooperation, respect for international law. Unfortunately, over the past year, following President Trump's return to the White House, we have seen a rapid departure of the United States from these …

10 Feb

2026

EL Speech

Situation in Northeast Syria, the violence against civilians and the need to maintain a sustainable ceasefire (debate)

Watch

10 Feb

2026

EL Speech

Building a stronger European defence in light of an increasingly volatile international environment (debate)

Watch

22 Jan

2026

EL Speech

Drones and new systems of warfare – the EU’s need to adapt to be fit for today’s security challenges (debate)

Watch

Mr President, drones and their response systems are now a component of the defence of the Member States. Unfortunately, the European Union is lagging behind in this crucial area. Recent overflights over airports and energy and military infrastructure in a number of Member States have highlighted our weaknesses. The aim of the report that we are tabling and debating today is to formulate a comprehe…

20 Jan

2026

EL Speech

CFSP and CSDP (Article 36 TEU) (joint debate)

Watch

Mr President, High Representative, in the new world we live in, the United States, as a guarantor of European security through NATO, is becoming an unpredictable partner with erratic, dangerous and grotesque decisions. It is now time for a truly common European foreign and defence policy. It is the only way that Europe can negotiate on an equal footing with the United States and effectively confro…

20 Jan

2026

EL Speech

Brutal repression against protesters in Iran (debate)

Watch

Madam President, High Representative, in recent weeks millions of courageous Iranians have taken to the streets demanding freedom, dignity and democracy. The theocratic regime responded to the peaceful demonstrations of the people with unprecedented repression. Thousands of people have been killed by regime forces. Tens of thousands have been arrested. Access to information and the internet have b…

17 Dec

2025

EL Speech

Preparation of the European Council meeting of 18-19 December 2025, in particular the need to support Ukraine, transatlantic relations and the EU’s strategic autonomy (debate)

Watch

Madam President, the need to finally put European strategic autonomy into practice is the answer to the new reality we are facing. With bold choices, more cooperation and common financing tools to reduce our dependencies, defence, energy, technology, critical infrastructure. If anyone was skeptical, the publication of the new National Security Strategy of the United States proves that we cannot re…

16 Dec

2025

EL Speech

EU Defence Readiness (joint debate)

Watch