Speeches

Madam President, Commissioner, dear colleagues, October 17 marks ten years since the Swedish author and publisher Gui Minhai was kidnapped by Chinese agents while visiting Thailand. What is he accused of? Writing and selling books, which I think is very important, and especially when you write and sell books about the dictatorship. And China is a dictatorship, and they prove to be a dictatorship, because they abducted him from another country. On this 10th anniversary, we demand his immediate and unconditional release, consular access and independent medical care. When I talk to Chinese diplomats these days, they tell me they want to have more trade, better relations with Europe. They tell us, you know, 'America is not your friend anymore. Why don't we work together?' Yes, but we do not want to work together with a brutal dictatorship. We do not want to work together with a country that just puts any critical author into jail. So I am proud that this House, united, can stand behind this message. I don't see anyone from the right-wing extremists. We'll see. They are not here for this, which is also interesting. No one has to be imprisoned for exercising their freedom and their expression.

Madam President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, Haiti is not only facing a crisis. The state is failing, institutions are collapsing and big criminals now rule with impunity. The Cabaret massacres, where innocent lives were brutally mown, are not an isolated tragedy. This is a symptom of a country where the rule of law has disappeared and justice no longer exists. What to do? First, the people of Haiti need justice. The perpetrators of crimes must bear the consequences. Secondly, we must break the cycle of violence. Thirdly, we must support the Haitian people. The European Union must step up emergency humanitarian aid and ensure safe access for humanitarian workers.

First of all, it was Iran financing Hezbollah and Hamas. They told Hamas to do the terrible crimes of 7 October. And then Israel reacted. No, I am not in favour of bombing Gaza. But Israel has a right to exist, and it is our job to do everything so that Israel has the possibility to exist. And Iran does not have the possibility to erase all Jews and all Israelis, because that is their plan. And there we have to be very clear.

Madam President, Commissioner, Minister! Iran must never have nuclear weapons. I hope we agree on that. This is a terror regime that not only terrorises the opposition, the people who kill women in their own country and does not allow them to live a normal life, but - and Mr Botenga does not want to understand this - also promises to murder all the people in Israel and to annihilate Israel. That's the mullahs' program, and that's why it's not just any regime. This regime must not have nuclear weapons. We know that any dictatorial regime will use this to blackmail others and nothing else. We know – and this is what the two ladies also mentioned – yes, there was this JCPOA attempt and, unfortunately, Trump broke it. That is why, of course, if there is a way, one must try to somehow control Iran. But one thing is also important: These Revolutionary Guards must be on the sanctions list because they dominate Iran's economy. As long as we don't put them on the sanctions list, the sanctions don't make sense either. So: The terrorist organization of the Revolutionary Guards must be sanctioned.

Madam President, Commissioner! We have seen today in this discussion not only that Putin threatens us with hybrid war, but also that he has friends and puppets sitting here. At least two parties in this House, the Austrian FPÖ and the Italian Lega, have a contract with the Putin Party, and it says, among other things, that the youth should be educated together to strengthen the friendship of the young generations in the spirit of patriotism. That is, Putin, who sends his youth to the war for murder and who has the Ukrainians murdered, is to educate the youth together with the FPÖ and the Lega. You have to imagine that. And these are the people who sit here in Parliament. And we know that Orbán has also surrendered. There has been a lot of talk about unity today. The so-called patriots are traitors. We in Europe need to stick together, because there is this threat from Putin – we now know it too. But the threat is not only from the outside, but it is also from the traitors from within.

Mr. Colleague, I wanted to ask you if you were aware of what your Party colleague Mazurek did at Auschwitz. I would also like to ask you what you say about the fact that a party friend of yours wants to be the friendly face of National Socialism. How will you deal with these many forms of anti-Semitism and racism in your group - because you want to govern, you just said - and how do you stand with the identities, wherever you hear the anti-Semitism that is also associated with the AfD?

Madam President, Commissioner! Anti-Semitism existed in Europe long before the Holocaust. I know this from my friend Ari Rath, born in Vienna in 1925. He had to go to a so-called Jewish class in elementary school, at a time when the Christian socialists had led a very authoritarian, a dictatorial regime. He also always said that he had just gotten away – then, of course, before the Nazis. But it started much earlier. The Nazis made it worse. This is the lesson we must learn: If anti-Semitism starts again, then it will not stop here, but can get much worse. That's why it's so dangerous for right-wing extremists to use these anti-Semitic codes. I know what they mean when they talk about the East Coast. I know what they mean when they call Soros. I know what they mean when they say that they are globalists. I also hear that in Austria from the far-right party, and I also hear that from the Russian anti-Semites. That's where they fit together again. It is the responsibility of all of us that Jews can build their tabernacles all over Europe these days. We are at the Feast of Tabernacles, and the right-wing extremists laugh about it. I am in favour of Jews everywhere in Europe being able to build their tabernacles without suffering from their anti-Semitic codes. Because it is true: In all areas, anti-Semitism is rising, yes, from the left, from right-wing extremists and from migrants. Our responsibility is to stand up against all these forms of anti-Semitism.

Madam President, one of the first memories of my life was the Iron Curtain, you know, as a little boy, and I saw the Iron Curtain to Hungary and to Czechoslovakia, as it was called, and I couldn't believe it, you know – the towers with the soldiers and their guns. And then I was so happy, like all the others, when it was open, and we had our friends and we could live together. And it's still, by the way, a beautiful trip from Vienna to Bratislava on the Danube. And now we're working together, and we have the same rules. Together, we live with the rule of law, and that's really good. But then I hear the recent findings of the EP Budgetary Control Committee's findings, and they reveal troubling cracks in Slovakia's management of EU funds, especially the misappropriation by the agricultural payments agency. And I really have to tell you: it's the money of the Europeans. We live together. We should have the same rights and the same duties and our money for everybody, but not for the corrupt people.

Madam President, We often talk here about the different forms of hybrid war. Today we talked about a particularly dangerous form of hybrid war that Putin is waging against us in Europe. I say this so clearly because many people in Austria tell me: We are neutral; If we just keep quiet, nothing can happen to us. Today's debate has shown that, of course, something can happen to all people in Austria who board a plane, because this influencing of flight data can become so dangerous at any time that it can lead to a plane crash – and I want my compatriots to understand that too. And this in combination: Mrs. von der Leyen's plane was disrupted, and afterwards the disinformation campaign started, that all those who say that, of course, this can not be true at all. This makes it all the more important – I am very pleased – that we have a Defence Commissioner – Commissioner Kubilius, thank you very much – and that we now and that you also ensure that this Galileo navigation system becomes so secure that we can protect the people of Europe – including the people of Austria.

Madam President, Madam Minister, Commissioner! I want to speak in German because people in Austria often ask me: What are you doing in Brussels? What are you doing for us in Austria? And I say: I want to protect you. I want to protect you from poisonous food, from fraudulent financial investments. We decide many things, but I also want to protect you from false, fake information, such as that coming from Putin's factories of lies. And for that we have this Democracy Shield; However, we still need to build it up fairly properly, together with the Commission. Against what? Against fake media – as we know, this ‘double-minded’ history of Russia – against managed migration flows – we have also learned in the Committee how strong they are – cyberattacks, sabotage. There is a hybrid war also against us, also against us in Austria and, of course, against Europe. And we oppose it, but we must also oppose the digital platforms in the USA, because one of the sentences of an expert I have noticed is: The business model of some of these platforms is hate. Hatred earns money. This is not what our Europe should look like. This has nothing to do with censorship, my dear friend, it has nothing to do with censorship, but it has to do with protecting people, just as we protect them from toxic food. And one more thing: The Republic of Moldova is particularly under attack, a small country, and Russia wants to falsify elections there, has spent $350 million to unsettle the people there, to misinform them. And the patriots, they voted against it today. We say we need to support the people of Moldova; The patriots voted against it, they are traitors, they want to extradite the Moldovans to the Russians. We want to protect them, together in Europe and just like the people of Austria.

Madam President, Madam President von der Leyen, as an Austrian, I would like to say to you: You are talking about the internal market; It needs to be expanded, yes. But it cannot be possible that the same products from the same chains are much more expensive in Austria than in Germany! So please, finally make the single market – the Commission can do that. An essential topic: Serbia. I've been to Serbia many times, and I have to tell you: Many people are disappointed with you because you are still too strong with the autocratic President Vucic because you do not side with the people. Marta Kos, the Commissioner responsible, is doing it now – finally! But the people there also want from you that it is clear that such an autocratic system has lost nothing in the EU. Thirdly: Russia. Thank you very much for saying now that Russian assets belong to Ukraine; As a loan at first, but please do it at last! You are finally doing it – we need it, the people there need it, and it is also good for Europe.

Mr President, Commissioner Kos, dear citizens of Moldova, your President was very welcome here today. And so are you: you are welcome to the European Union if the negotiations go well. I visited Moldova many times, and I saw this Russian influence firsthand. This time, Russia has reportedly allocated USD 350 million for buying votes, corruption, intimidation and so on. That is a huge sum for a small country. Moldova's resilience is Europe's resilience. If the Kremlin succeeds, it will embolden further aggression against Ukraine, the Western Balkans and beyond. The EU must act now. We must oppose the Russian lies with facts and truths. We need to increase our support for independent media, cybersecurity and civil society in Moldova. We must also accelerate Moldova's EU accession process and send a clear signal: Europe stands with the Moldovan people.

Madam President, dear Commissioner, I want to start with some very good news. My group, the Renew Group, will propose the Serbian students for the Sakharov Prize of this year, together with Irena Joveva. Thank you very much, Irena, for working with us for that. This is a very important sign. It was awarded for the first time in 1988 by Parliament to Nelson Mandela. It's a human rights prize, and that is the message to all parts of Serbian society, not only to those freedom-loving students and freedom-loving citizens, but also to Mr Vučić and his people. Human rights are important for the European Union. They are an important part of our values. The Serbian people are welcome in the European Union, but the authoritarian Vučić regime is not. That is a very important message. The next thing is, Ms Vicsek, you talked about the tragedy in Novi Sad. It was not a tragedy – it was corruption. It was corruption with China, and it was corruption of the Vučić regime, and we have to say that openly. Yes, there is also corruption in the European Union, but we fight it here and we say very openly, you should fight it there if you want to be a member of the European Union. One more point: he even has political prisoners now. That does not work in the European Union. I want to welcome here Biljana Đorđević – she is here today from the Green Party – and my friends from the Liberal Party, Pavlo Grbović and Natan Albahari, and also Borko Stefanović from the Social Democrats. We had a very good conversation today. We feel that we want to be European and we want to work together. Of course, it's the decision of the Serbian people to decide which kind of government you want, but we want human rights.

Madam President, Madam Vice‑President, dear Commissioner, Ms Kos, you rightly said that it's a strong sign that Ukraine comes to Europe. It's also a strong signal to Moscow. But there are other signals to Moscow from the very left and from the very right. These signals are that they are parrots. They just say the same as Putin, we just heard it. And then, Ms Gál – she already left – talked about her boys. But you know, when Putin kills children, she shrugs her shoulders. She doesn't care. You know, think about the children in Ukraine. They can't go to school. Think about them. They can't go to a hospital because he's also bombing hospitals. You don't care about that and we know that. On the other hand, we know that if Ukraine flourishes, that's a great sign that being part of the European Union is a better life and also that democracy is a better life. That's also our sign to them. One message to the people in Ukraine: there is a huge majority that are in favour of you. Don't listen to those extremists. There's a huge majority for you and we will fight for you. We will work for you. Let's work together for a better Europe.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen. Gergely Karácsony was here with us today – the mayor of Budapest – and he explained the Orbán media system in detail again. Orbán takes EU money to incite against the EU in Hungary, and he threatens all entrepreneurs and media outlets that report somewhat more critically, such as those that advertise in critical media, such entrepreneurs are threatened. That's the Orbán system, and Austrian FPÖ leader Kickl was in Budapest and said he wanted to do the same in Austria, and then he scolded the globalists in Brussels there. We know: Globalists - at least with us - always have an anti-Semitic undertone, i.e. the evil globalists here. Then there's something else: Mr Lopatka has already said how much money has been received at the moment. But European money is also invested in inflammatory, far-right Austrian media and one of them even brought an interview with Mr Medvedchuk, where he was allowed to tell how great Russia's war against Ukraine is. These are the extreme right-wing media in Austria. They are taking European money to fight Europe, and we must stop that.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen. Gergely Karácsony was here with us today – the mayor of Budapest – and he explained the Orbán media system in detail again. Orbán takes EU money to incite against the EU in Hungary, and he threatens all entrepreneurs and media outlets that report somewhat more critically, such as those that advertise in critical media, such entrepreneurs are threatened. That's the Orbán system, and Austrian FPÖ leader Kickl was in Budapest and said he wanted to do the same in Austria, and then he scolded the globalists in Brussels there. We know: Globalists - at least with us - always have an anti-Semitic undertone, i.e. the evil globalists here. Then there's something else: Mr Lopatka has already said how much money has been received at the moment. But European money is also invested in inflammatory, far-right Austrian media and one of them even brought an interview with Mr Medvedchuk, where he was allowed to tell how great Russia's war against Ukraine is. These are the extreme right-wing media in Austria. They are taking European money to fight Europe, and we must stop that.

Madam President, Commissioner! I will speak in German, because I am also addressing the many people from Bosnia and Herzegovina who live in Austria, many of whom had to come to us as refugees, who have found a home with us, and who are now so important to me because they can have contact back to their homeland, to their two homelands in Europe. But first of all, many thanks to Ondřej Kolář. Thank you for the cooperation, for the hard work, and also for the others, the shadow rapporteurs. As I said, Bosnia and Herzegovina and the people, they definitely belong to the European Union in their diversity and uniqueness. EU membership is the only way we can bring Bosnia to Europe – that goes without saying. This future is under threat and the name Milorad Dodik has already fallen. Of course, this is dangerous, because he wants to destroy. He wants to destroy, also on behalf, in cooperation, of course, with Russia, with political interests, with China, with economic interests. And we must not forget President Vučić, who also sees his work in destroying coexistence in Bosnia and Herzegovina. But the EU stands in support of a united, stable Bosnia and Herzegovina. The people of Bosnia and Herzegovina deserve this, and we will continue to work for them.

Madam President, Commissioner, following this discussion, I had the impression, but I understand now why it is so difficult to have any conversation with the right‑wing extremists. They come out and say, 'If you look at Albania, it's just a gang of drug dealers, and there's only crime'. Yes, we heard about it. There is crime. There are problems. The media situation is not perfect at all. But on the other hand, there is a strong civil society that wants to develop. On the other hand, there is very strong Russian influence there, which you probably like, but which is very dangerous not only for Albania but is also very dangerous for us. So we have to talk to them. It's a merit‑based process, as we heard many times, which is very good, and the Albanians have to prove that they can be part of the European Union. And one last sentence: when I was in Albania in the early 1990s, many people spoke Italian and they knew a lot about the world because of the Italian media, even in this terrible communist system. And that brings me again to the idea we have to give more information for those societies today who have no information, like Belarus, when nobody of the right‑wing people were there, like Russia and other countries. That's also our job in Europe.

Madam President, dear Commissioner, dear Minister, when I think about Lukashenka, I don't think of a president. I think of a dictator. But moreover, I also think of a traitor because he sold out his country to a war criminal, to Putin. He told him he can make war against Ukraine also out of Belarus. Of course, we talked about the political prisoners. I was always impressed when I talked to Ms Tsikhanouskaya. I really didn't dare to ask, 'Did you hear anything from your husband?', because once she told me, 'No, for over a year I haven't heard from him', and now we know that it's for many years. Just imagine what kind of torture it is, not only to throw people into a prison, but then you say you will never hear from your family again. As it was mentioned, it's at least 1 100, 1 200 political prisoners who are still there and we have to talk about them. We have to put pressure on Lukashenka, as it was mentioned again. Also, thank you very much, Commissioner, you talked about those 400 000 people here. We have to help them. We talked about action already – action is media. We need more information for the people who still live in Belarus. Belarus is Europe. It will be free. It belongs to the EU. Zhyve Belarus!

Madam President, 'Nationalism is war'. It was François Mitterrand who said this to the European Parliament. Now I have to continue in German, because it is also about Austria. There is this warlike nationalism that we are witnessing from Putin, who has the people of Ukraine murdered. There is the aggressive nationalism of a Romanian presidential candidate who says: We own a piece of Ukraine. There is the aggressive, a bit playful nationalism of Orbán, who walks with a scarf, with great Hungarian, also a claim, there belongs to us more. This stupidity is also committed by an Austrian provincial government, the Styrian, among the so-called patriots of the FPÖ. They have the Dachstein song and say that part of Slovenia belongs to Austria. This is an old song, has nothing to do with today, but this provincial governor wants this in the provincial constitution or at least his own law. It's destructive, it's broken. Everyone has the right to a home. Our home is called Europe. If we live together in our homeland, let's not let that destroy us. We live together, not against each other.

Madam President, dear colleagues, I've been to Srebrenica; I know how much pain is there, if you look in the eyes of the relatives of the countless victims. It was predominantly men who were killed, but also women and children. They endured unimaginable horrors. The pain remains a stark reminder of those terrible days of July 1995. Some of the Bosnian perpetrators – including the leader Ratko Mladić – are still behind bars for their crimes. And I ask the Serbian people: please understand what happens. Open your eyes, acknowledge the past and engage with the victims of this genocide. Accepting the truth is the first step towards healing. We Europeans strive for unity, embracing our diversity and history to forge a peaceful future together. And I can tell you, as an Austrian, we in Austria also had a difficult time accepting the role of Austrians in the Holocaust, but it was so important to acknowledge this painful truth. It was essential for understanding our past, but also our common future here in Europe. The events in Srebrenica have been ruled a genocide by international courts. We honour the victims. I bow my head and solemnly declare: Never again! Yet even today, we witness similar atrocities. When we look to Ukraine, and what some Russians are doing there, they remind us that the shadows of genocide still loom. We have an exhibition on the other side of the bridge, in the Churchill Building. Thank you, Madam President, for opening it tomorrow. And thank you to the people from the Srebrenica Memorial Centre for working there. I really ask you to go there, look at it and let's repeat: Never again!

Mr President, some right-wing colleagues told us that Trump wants to chase away just the 'woke' scientists. That's wrong. I have here the editorial of The Lancet, a well-known publication of science. What they're writing is that Elon Musk's department slashed federal budgets and awards, interrupting investigations into paediatric cancer, diabetes, HIV, prematurely ending at least 113 clinical trials and withholding funds from more than 200 universities. PhD projects have been cancelled, graduate admissions rescinded and infrastructure investment foregone. The visas of foreign-born American students and faculty have been revoked. So that's the situation. In the United States, they can't work freely anymore. So please, Commissioner, go there, get them. We really have to do something. They have great talent and they should come to Europe. One more thing: yesterday, we had a conference about the mental health of the children of Ukraine. They are refugees – 20 000 of them were stolen and brought to Russia. They need a lot for mental health. Please think about them as well. Let's do something for them.

Mr President, how I love these really strong men – autocrats – when they are trembling. And now I see Mr Orbán is trembling. He's afraid of the situation. But what's the situation? He says it's about transparency. He wants more transparency. OK, let's have more transparency about corruption. Let's have more transparency: what do you do with the money? Let's have transparency: why is his family so rich? Why are his friends so rich? Open the coffers. Tell us where the money is from. It's from our taxpayers. Of course we know that. So what is he afraid of? He's afraid that his political business plan doesn't work anymore – the political plan to have a majority by suppressing the media and oppressing the public mind and the business plan by making money with our taxpayers' money. One more thing: he says that his opponents are bugs, animals. He says that political activists must be liquidated. People who talk like this have nothing to do in my – in our – European Union.

Madam President, there's a group from the Ukraine Leadership Academy in the House today. I saw them already in Vienna, and they are the future of Ukraine. They told me that of course they want peace, but they also want freedom. And I will tell you this: one day some of them will be here as Members of the European Parliament. They have understood that without freedom there is no lasting peace. And they also watch Russian television. What do they see there? Mr Putin – some of you love him – shows his own chapel. That's where he's praying: praying to the devil to kill more people. That's the fact: he wants to kill more people. And his people say also on television that Ukrainians don't have a right to live as long as they don't speak Russian. Those are the facts, and that is the reason also why we have to continue to support Ukraine and also take all these Russian assets. Ms von der Leyen's not here anymore, but she should do it now. Don't only talk about it, do it now. Give them the money. They need it for the reconstruction of Ukraine. Slava Ukraini!

Mr President, dear colleagues, first of all, thank you very much for the cooperation for the report. I went to Serbia last week to talk to parties of government and opposition and to civil society, and of course, to mourn the victims of Novi Sad – 16 people died there. When I was in Serbia, I realised how terrible the oppression of the free media is, how the secret service is spying on and wiretapping opposition groups and civil society, how meanly Vučić is speaking about the opposition, calling them 'political paedophiles' and how deeply corruption is rooted in his system. The catastrophe of Novi Sad was not bad luck; it was the result of corruption. Thank you very much, Commissioner Kos, we have been there together and we talked to young people. We talked to civil society. They explain to us: it's corruption. And this corruption brings more and more people – not only students, also professionals, workers – on the street, and the majority want to live in Europe, they want to live in the European Union, just like us. And I really have to tell you: you, the young people, but also the other older people, everybody in Serbia, you are part of Europe, you are part of the European Union. You are welcome here. But the regime of Vučić in this form cannot enter the European Community. Mr Vučić , don't stand in the way of the future of your people.