Speeches

Madam President, Madam Ombudsman, Commissioner, the annual report of the European Ombudsman for 2024 largely reflects the work of the previous mandate. Still, I am glad that after just one year, we can already see that under the leadership of Teresa Anjinho, the citizens of the European Union are in good and caring hands. The Ombudsman is one of the key guardians of trust in our institutions, and I truly appreciate the effort that has already been made because, as we have seen in this House, the Ombudsman sometimes has to face pressure from all sides. Some on the far right have tried to turn this process into yet another ideological battlefield, using it to claim that the Union is somehow fundamentally broken. The best answer to that is very simple: transparency, professionalism and fairness. But scrutiny must go in every direction. The Ombudsman must also be ready to challenge the institutions themselves, including the European Commission, for example, when procedures like urgent legislative processes risk being overused. At a time of growing Eurosceptic sentiment, we must show that the European Union is close to its citizens, that it's transparent, that it's accessible, and that it works for the people. That is a huge task, but an essential one for the credibility of the Union. I also hope that the Ombudsman will continue raising the issue of geographical balance in the EU institutions. Too often we still see imbalances in the representation of different Member States. My country, Poland, remains one of those underrepresented in the EU administration. A truly European administration should reflect the diversity of the whole of the Union. Twenty-two years after accession, it is high time to achieve this goal. Altogether, we support this mission and count on the Ombudsman's determination to continue building a more transparent, fair and citizen-focused Europe.

Mr President, Commissioner, Some time ago, President Zelenskyy heard at the white House the following accusation: 'You are gambling with World War III'. Let us be very clear, the man gambling with global stability is not the leader defending his country, Ukraine. The man responsible for escalating tensions is Vladimir Putin. It was Putin who chose the war. He started it, he fuels it every day, and he alone bears responsibility for its brutal continuation. And now we see another cynical chapter: the recruitment and trafficking of non-Russian nationals to fight in his war against Ukraine. What does this tell us about the value Putin places on human life? He drags people into his war from wherever he can – from North Korea and Cuba to African countries – often through deception, coercion or exploitation. These confused and misled recruits are not treated as soldiers, but as disposable tools of war. This is not only aggression against Ukraine. It is the industrialisation of human exploitation for war. Europe must call it what it is – and hold Russia accountable.

Mr President, Madam Commissioner, colleagues, the attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure revealed the true scale of brutality of Putin's aggression. Russian troops are no longer fighting Ukrainian soldiers, they are waging war against families, women, children and the elderly. They are targeting people who are being deprived of electricity, heating and water in the middle of winter, when the temperature inside an apartment is close to zero and outside it falls to -25. This is an extremely urgent matter, one that fully deserves urgent debate in this House. If Vladimir Putin seeks to break the morale of the Ukrainian people, then this House and indeed the entire European continent must demonstrate even greater empathy and solidarity. Four years ago, as well as today, the people of Poland have shown their solidarity – solidarność. Hundreds of power generators have been sent from Poland to Ukraine, provided both by the government and through civil society fundraising campaigns. We will stand by Ukraine until a just and lasting peace is achieved.

Madam President, Vice-President Virkkunen, thank you for guiding the adoption of the DNA ‑ the Connectivity Bible, as some people say ‑ through the College. While I appreciate your presence before the Parliament immediately following the adoption, I will reserve my judgment for the time being. This crucial proposal deserves thorough scrutiny from the Parliament, and we will ensure that it receives it. For now, I will focus on the positive signs I observe. First and foremost, I commend the courage to propose a legal instrument of regulation to bring significant reform to a market historically characterised by 27 distinct domestic markets. This is especially commendable considering that some Member States, including the large ones, have already called for a directive. I wholeheartedly support your decision. Secondly, I recognize the efforts to infuse more single-market logic into the telecommunications sector, including the introduction of a single passport procedure, Union-level authorisation for satellite networks and services and enhanced governance at the European level. Dear colleagues, the journey we are about to embark on will shape the future of our European digital ecosystem ‑ encompassing connectivity, cloud, and AI systems ‑ determining our ability to achieve global competitiveness and sovereignty. There is no thriving digital economy and European security without state-of-the art connectivity, so let’s make sure that we get it right!

Madam President, I'm sorry. Mr. Commissioner, I'm sorry. Madam Minister, I'm sorry. The old, primitive, post-Soviet narrative is not dead. He is doing well – and worse, he is also resounding in this House. I observe with concern the votes and votes on aid to Ukraine and sanctions against Putin and Lukashenko. It turns out that there are among us – also among Polish MEPs – agents of Russian influence, those who are closer to the interests of the East than the interests of Poland, and therefore of Europe. That is why I am in favour of launching all procedures to investigate Russian influence: the screening of assets, contacts and political ties. It must be clear who and in whose name is repeating the narrative of betrayal. Votes are one thing, but what is even worse, are attempts to justify the dark interests of Putin's Russia and attempts to warm the image of the dictator Lukashenko. Europe will either be a community of values and security, or it will become a hostage to the interests of others. I choose a free, sovereign and resilient Europe. And I call on you to do so, wishing all Europeans a peaceful and safe holiday!

Mr President, Commissioner, colleagues, today we stand shoulder to shoulder with Lithuania. Poland does not need briefings to understand what is happening – because we are under the same attack. Hybrid warfare, provocations and pressure on our borders are not theories or scenarios, they are facts. At first, Lukashenka claimed he knew nothing about the balloons and the provocations. Now, we see him negotiating with the US administration and issuing promises that airspace will no longer be violated. This exposes a dangerous truth: the security of European nations is being treated as a bargaining chip, negotiating over our heads without our consent. Let me be absolutely clear: this is unacceptable. Belarus proves that Europe's security does not depend on Ukraine alone. It also depends on the future of Belarus. As long as Belarus remains under Russian control, Europe will remain exposed. That is why Belarus must, one day, be free from the Russian sphere of influence. An attack on Lithuania is an attack on the entire European Union. The response must be common, the response must be firm, and the response must leave no doubt that Europe will defend itself.

Madam President, I'm sorry. In light of the shocking terrorist attack in Australia, I would like to draw your attention to another anti-Semitic transgression by MEP Grzegorz Braun. On November 22 this year, in front of the former Nazi extermination camp Auschwitz, Grzegorz Braun, in a 20-minute speech, spared no words for insulting Jews and justifying Nazism. He said, among other things, that today's officers of the Polish services should not become some ghetto police, who will harass and persecute their own compatriots at the whistle of the Jews. These cynical words of MEP Braun are unacceptable. The brutal downplaying of the gas chambers at Auschwitz and the suggestion that it was a fake is not only deeply offensive to living Jews, but desecrates the memory of Holocaust victims. These words are also a disgrace to the Poles, who were one of the main victims of the Nazis. There is no greater blasphemy than protecting criminals and denying the deaths of millions of innocent people. We cannot allow the European Parliament to be an arena for such statements without consequences. I call on the President to hold Mr Braun accountable. I demand a clear position and decisive action. Let this be a message for everyone. There is no permission for anti-Semitism, Holocaust denial or justification for any crimes against humanity. These are the historical ones and those that are taking place in Ukraine today.

Mr President, dear colleagues, energy imports in Europe are fuelling Russia's war machine. We should take all possible steps to stop buying from Russia and its friends. I am proud of our ITRE and INTA committees for making the first big step beyond sanctions, which have their limits with the unanimity rule being in place. Special thanks to my colleagues Katri Kulmuni and Ľubica Karvašová, who fought tooth and nail to make sure that the phasing-out of Russian energy imports comes faster than initially planned by the Commission. On top of it, I am also happy that my proposals – strengthening enforcement, giving Member States specific tools when it comes to introducing penalties and extending the scope of entities covered by the rules – were fully supported. But this job is half done. Now we need to expedite negotiations with the Council, and convince our colleagues in the capitals that expanding the scope of the regulation also to oil and petroleum products from Russia is possible. Even if we still need to introduce some exemptions, I think it is worth taking this first step ahead. Russia's war cannot be financed by us any longer!

Madam President, I'm sorry. Five years. Five years in prison in damp cells. Five years of longing for loved ones who cannot be seen due to the risk of their imprisonment. Five years of trauma not only for Belarusians, but also for Europe, which looks at this horror played by one actor. We allow Lukashenko to laugh in our faces. In interviews with cynical calm, he says that he does not care about sanctions. He cares about them through a network of intermediaries, through cryptocurrencies. I am pleased that there is a strong call in the resolution for sanctions to be sealed and extended. We have tools. The EU remains Belarus's second largest trading partner after Russia. Sanctions are not an end in themselves. People are the most important. More than 1,200 political prisoners are still imprisoned. Among them, editor Andrzej Poczobut, who has been nominated for the Sakharov Prize – and I hope he has been awarded today. The Lukashenko regime does not only bind them. He persecutes them, expropriates them from their possessions, follows them in Europe, and intimidates their loved ones. There is no dialogue with Minsk until the prisoners are released and rehabilitated. Donald Trump is making a historic mistake that history will never forget. In order to talk, Belarus needs to reform itself, to ensure that fundamental human rights are guaranteed. Any attempt to normalize relations with Lukashenko is a betrayal of those who gave their freedom and life for values. Therefore, on behalf of Renew Europe, I call on Europe to assume this responsibility, to support more independent media, NGOs and citizens' initiatives in Belarus and beyond than ever before. Free Belarus is not only a matter of geopolitics, it is a matter of conscience.

Mr President, thank you very much. I would like to thank Mr Sandro Gozi sincerely for his excellent work on this report. I would also like to draw attention to one of the arguments that this report raises - that, after Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, we should speed up work on the enlargement of the European Union and that there is less and less space for the grey area in Europe. Europe is becoming increasingly black and white. We have to pay attention to that. I would like to thank Commissioner Kos for her hard work, determination and creativity in this process, so that we can move from words to action as soon as possible when it comes to the actual enlargement of the Union. I would like to use the Commissioner's presence to ask her to comment on media reports that the European Commission would consider a scenario in which the voting rights of the new Member States acceding to the European Union would be restricted. Is there really such a scenario and should it be treated as an alternative to the revision of the European Treaties?

Mr President, thank you very much. Commissioner, I'm sorry. Oh, my friends! I would like to thank the rapporteur sincerely for his work, for this full report. I would like to say that the Committee on Petitions is one of the most important tools of democracy in the European Union. It is a place where the voice of the citizen really counts, where we can directly outsource work to our politicians. At a time when the populism of the far right and Eurosceptics repeats that the Union is a distant, inaccessible creation, PETI shows something completely different. The Union is a community over which the citizen has a real influence. In 2024, we received more than 1500 petitions. Each of them is a specific, human matter. Many of them raised the problem of smog in cities or violation of consumer rights. This is proof that people want to participate in the life of the Union and that their voice matters. The report also reminds us that we still need to improve procedures. That is why, in the Committee on Petitions, I will also strive to ensure that petitions are dealt with faster, more transparently and in a way that is accessible to everyone. I would also like to stress that PETI should not be used for national party purposes. I look here with full sympathy especially on my colleagues from Spain. Such actions can undermine citizens' trust in the EU institutions. I want to be clear: Every petition counts for us. By submitting it, the citizen has a real influence on the decisions of this House. This proves that the EU is not a distant institution. It is our common space where every voice can create law and the future of the Union.

I'm not sure if I fully understood your question, frankly speaking, perhaps because it was not a digital one! But as I said, I do believe that we have no other choice than to develop our own digital solutions and that we have to do it now, do it immediately, because, as the Draghi report stated, we are so dependent that we are fully not independent when it comes to the digital solutions. So I know, and I can hear the populist voices, this is not about censorship, this is about our digital existence. That is the real issue on the table.

Mr President, dear colleagues, there can be no doubt whether our digital rules should be properly enforced. There is no place for bargaining when it comes to the interests of our citizens and our businesses. Presidents – including US presidents – come and go. As a person who worked many years on developing transatlantic relations, I can tell you: 'keep calm and make Europe competitive'. The US will be back. Our relations have to be based on mutual respect and equal treatment. In the meantime, we have to focus on our own digital economy. We need an ambitious vision for building a European digital ecosystem from connectivity through AI, semiconductors, cloud infrastructure and data centres. We need comprehensive industrial policy investments in the base layer of the digital infrastructure, and driving demand for the European alternatives to the hyperscalers. It is key that we keep competitiveness at the heart of this process and we do it together with our own digital industry. That is why we need to embrace the EuroStack concept and make it finally happen.

Madam President, I'm sorry. We're at war. We are in a war that we have not provoked or started. The war can be as terrible as it is in Ukraine. It can also take the form of thousands of acts of sabotage, arson, cyber-attacks and disinformation. It also acts by buying politicians, including in this Parliament, blocking the GPS signal, ripping off submarine cables with ‘Shadow Fleets’ anchors. Drone attack on Poland is another phase of aggression. This operation was retailly prepared. It was a test before the next, further tests. At this point, we didn't fail because we were together. Dutch pilots were side by side with Polish airmen in the air, we were supported by soldiers from other NATO countries – and I thank you for that. There are declarations of support for the eastern flank. This is necessary, because today the eastern flank defends the security of the whole of Europe. Fortunately, no one died in Poland yesterday. This was possible thanks to the efficiency of the state, the heroism of soldiers and the help of allies. On the other hand, whether our response will be tough and decisive enough depends on how often such acts of aggression will be repeated. We need to introduce more effective sanctions against the regimes of Putin and Lukashenko, use frozen Russian assets, consider a permanent closure of our borders with Russia and Belarus, and effectively close the skies over western Ukraine. Let's stop being naive. Putin wants to rebuild a great, imperial and aggressive Russia. We Poles will never agree to this. Poland is not dead yet! Long live free Europe!

Mr President, internet can be, at the same time, one of the best things ever invented by the mankind, but at the same time also a curse damaging or destroying our society, full of harmful hate speech and simple lies, called nowadays 'fake news', out of courtesy. Our responsibility is to make sure it is the best version of itself, and to contribute to its global governance in line with the EU values. The European Parliament delegation participates in the annual meetings of the Internet Governance Forum and promotes our vision for the internet, which is open, interoperable and governed by all. So I welcome the initiative to prolong the IGF mandate. We need it more than ever, with more and more tendencies to instrumentalise the internet. Some even try to use it against our European democracy. We should not allow that to happen and stand firm in defence of democratic principles in Europe and the world.

Mr President, thank you very much. I must say that I am satisfied with the content of the own-initiative report of the Committee on the Internal Market. Public procurement generates a huge demand impulse for the European market, which is about 14% of the European Union's gross domestic product. So we have to make good use of it. On the one hand, it is public money, so we must make sure that it is spent as effectively as possible. On the other hand, we must end a kind of naivety that does not see the role of public procurement in supporting the European economy, European industry. We need an industrial policy strategy in which public procurement plays an important role. I am thinking in particular of the digital, technological aspect, where we need to start using bold public procurement to develop European digital projects. I hope that the European Commission will propose an ambitious approach already in the expected Cloud and AI Act, and that Member States will be bolder in using public procurement as a tool to build and strengthen our technological sovereignty.

Madam President, I'm sorry. Commissioner, I'm sorry. Madam Minister, I'm sorry. It is, of course, good news that 14 people headed by Siarhei Tsikhanouski have been released, but let us not let this good news obscure the most important truth: These people should never have gone to jail. They didn't commit any crime. Their only crime (in quotation marks) was the fight for freedom, truth and democracy. The release of these people is not a grace, it is part of the calculated game of the Lukashenka regime, a PR game in which the dictator tries to gain points in international relations. Let's not be fooled by this. More than 1,100 people remain imprisoned, including Polish journalist Andrzej Poczobut. As long as at least one of Lukashenko's political prisoners remains imprisoned, we will call for sanctions to be extended. Although many say that the Belarusian economy will not recover, the data says otherwise. For example, Belarusian airlines have increased their contribution to GDP by 14% year-on-year. This is just one of many examples of the regime adapting, combing, looking for loopholes in sanctions. We can't help him survive. As long as Lukashenko rules, as long as democracy, human rights will be dead, non-existent in Belarus. Mr Siarhei, you are cordially invited to the European Parliament. Your presence among the Belarusian opposition will add motivation and lead to a uprising that will finally overthrow the Lukashenka regime. It's a live Belarus!

Mr President, thank you very much. Minister Adam Szłapka is no longer with us today, but I want to take this opportunity to thank him for six months of arduous work in this House. I would like to thank all the Polish officials, thanks to whom the hard work of the Polish Presidency went so smoothly. I started with Poland, because our country is the best example of the success of the process of enlargement of the European Union. In a short time, Poland has become a leader in economic and social development throughout the Union. I believe that welcoming new members will strengthen our collective resilience against growing geopolitical pressures. The EU enlargement process – including Ukraine, after the end of the war with Russia – could be a scenario win-win. Simplifying the accession procedures, while at the same time protecting the agriculture of the current Member States (including Polish farmers), would be the right step forward for all of us. The accession procedure should therefore be simplified. Enlargement is not only a gesture of solidarity, but also an investment in the security and prosperity of Europe as a whole. In difficult global circumstances, it is time to reaffirm the Union’s global leadership. Let us also allow those who want to co-create this project with us to take part in it.

Madam President, I'm sorry. Russia is waging a war of destruction, a war designed to eliminate the entire Ukrainian people. Russia has a lot of people, this has always been their approach. As Stalin said: (Member speaks a non-official language) – They have lots of people. For Russia, people are just numbers. Since they did not respect and do not respect the lives of their own citizens, much less do they have respect for those whom they perceive as enemies. They have no respect for bombed Ukrainian civilians, for prisoners of war held in inhumane conditions, for hundreds of Ukrainian children kidnapped to Russia. This is a cultural gap between us and them. We cannot change their mentality, free their enslaved minds. We can only act decisively to discourage Putin from further attacks on Ukraine, from attacking Europe. All those who here in the European Parliament sympathize with Putin, acknowledge his reasons, go to Moscow and want to pact with him, open Nord Stream, are co-responsible for the horrors of this protracted war. Human life is the supreme value. The life of each of us. Let us bear this in mind when Putin's supporters and the heirs of the NSDAP dream of annihilating entire nations. No more such crimes!

Mr President, thank you very much. Mr. Commissioner, I'm sorry. Mr. Secretary of State! Nord Stream 2 has become a symbol of the myopia of some European elites in the not-so-distant past. But we should make sure that it is also a warning for the future, a warning against returning to Business as usual with Russia. There can be no return to business relations with Russia, which is imperial, aggressive and does not respect international law. On the other hand, our energy infrastructure must be built in such a way that it is resistant to external attacks, to blackmail, to various methods of pressure that are already emerging. Just a few hours ago, the Polish navy in the Baltic Sea drove a Russian ship out of the shadow fleet, which posed a threat to the power cable between Poland and Sweden. Our infrastructure must also be as decentralised as possible and the energy systems of the Member States must be well interconnected by interconnectors. We need cheap, green, clean energy and tools to stabilize our energy system. I therefore welcome the Commission's roadmap for ending energy imports from Russia. Now we need to implement it as soon as possible.

Madam President, I'm sorry. I come from Poland, the country that suffered the most during World War II. Millions of human lives – Poles, but also Jews – were killed in the name of hatred and division, a community that for centuries had its place in Poland, in a country of understanding and tolerance. After the destruction of millions of people, the destruction of hundreds of cities and trauma, peace has come for generations. This is exactly why the European Union was founded 75 years ago. To build peace and community. Let's not delude ourselves: Euroscepticism fed by radicalism, fuelled by money from Moscow, is a road to the past, a road to catastrophe. That is why I condemn in the strongest possible terms today the disgraceful anti-Semitic speeches of MEP Grzegorz Braun. It is not just hate speech, it is an attack on the values on which Europe is built. I also appeal to the Eurosceptics: open history books, see how much the European project has given us – it guarantees freedom, security and cooperation like never before in European history.

Madam President, I'm sorry. Mr. Commissioner, I'm sorry. Mr. Secretary of State! What happened on the Iberian Peninsula has stunned us all. The scale of the chaos caused by the blackout makes us painfully aware of two issues. Firstly, how crucial climate policy, energy sources and energy infrastructure are today. Secondly, how important it is to ensure the safety of the population, to provide the public with knowledge about how to deal with emergency situations and to build a well-functioning civil defence. Our infrastructure must be built wisely. The systems of different countries need to be better connected than they are today with interconnectors. It should also be as decentralised as possible, as the war in Ukraine also shows. We need cheap, green and clean energy, but also tools to stabilize our energy system, and in the short term, energy supplies cannot finance criminal regimes. I am very pleased with the road map shown yesterday of complete independence from oil and gas from Russia. Mr Commissioner, Mr Minister, I wish you good luck in these matters. I believe that these are issues that no European country can solve on its own. We need good cooperation and European solutions.

For over 20 years I was a journalist and editor-in-chief of significant media in Poland. I grew up in communist Poland, listening to Radio Free Europe and the Voice of America in turn. This has shaped me as a conscious citizen and a future responsible journalist. Today, Radio Free Europe reaches millions of people every day in Europe and Asia, often being one of the few or even the only sources of reliable, honest and independent information. In a situation where the United States is acting irresponsibly, Europe must find a solution to fill the gap. I am pleased that the Commission is already working on this and that the Polish Presidency of the Council has met and discussed with the delegation of Radio Free Europe and Radio Swoboda. They are pleased with the declarations of the Czech Republic, where the radio station is located, but also of other countries about the readiness to provide the Radio with appropriate funding. I call for a solution to be found as soon as possible to give stability to the Radio and the journalists working in it, so that they can continue their key mission.

Madam President, Executive Vice-President, let me first congratulate you for coming up with this plan within the Commission's first 100 days. On a personal note, I had the chance to participate – perhaps as the only Member of the European Parliament – in President von der Leyen's presentation of the Clean Industrial Deal in Antwerp, in front of the Europe's top industry executives. I would sum up the room's reactions this way: well done for the first step. But this is only the first step. We need to do much more to rebuild EU competitiveness, which is so vital to ensure our ability to defend ourselves in such a dangerous situation. To put it simply, we would not be able to defend Europe without the ability to produce steel, cement or pharmaceuticals on our continent. We need to focus on reducing energy costs for industry. Asking Member States to cut down their energy taxation cannot be our main and only response. We need European solutions and joint efforts to save our industries. Dear Executive Vice-President, I encourage you to be bold and ambitious. This Parliament will support you.