Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2009-09-15-Speech-2-155"
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"en.20090915.18.2-155"2
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"Mr Cohn-Bendit may have spoken for too long, and it may be that I hardly agree with him at all, but he always has interesting things to say, and that, after all, is important in Parliament. This gives Parliament the vitality which you spoke of, Mr President, in your speech at the beginning today.
The European Conservatives and Reformists will vote for President-designate Barroso. We will not do this because we agree with you on everything, Mr President. There are, unfortunately, many questions on which we do not agree. I will mention at the outset your enthusiastic support for the Treaty of Lisbon. We do not share that enthusiastic support, but we do share the dislike and condemnation of all forms of national egoism and nationalism which you expressed in your speech.
Indeed, it was to Europe, to our continent, which we want to be at peace and to live on in peace, that national egoisms and chauvinisms brought an ocean of misery. We thank God that today, we live in a Europe at peace.
We do not agree on some of the matters about which Mr Barroso spoke. We are entitled to disagree, and we will defend that right, although some continually question the simple fact that voters in Europe have elected European Conservatives and Reformists, and I promise that they will elect still more of them. We are going to be here, and our voice is going to be heard.
We are entitled, therefore, to say on behalf of our voters that we support Mr Barroso in his difficult mission. I am glad that mention has been made today of European solidarity. I am glad it was said that the Commission – the new Commission under the leadership of Mr Barroso – will direct its efforts to enable us to overcome the economic crisis. This is extremely important, and we are pleased that the ambitious programme which Mr Barroso has presented indeed appears to be directed at the most important areas, where action on our part is needed. This, by the way, shows how great the need is for cooperation between the nations in today’s Europe. The crisis has affected all of us, irrespective of the political structure and economy we are part of, irrespective of the region of Europe where our countries are found. The crisis is affecting us all, and all of us must fight the crisis.
Mr President, in giving you support on behalf of our group, I would like to appeal to you to ensure that, in the coming months, Europe does not remain indifferent to what is happening in world politics. I do not hide the fact that, in my opinion, one of the most important tests which awaits the western world is what is happening today in Iran.
Iran is a country which makes no secret of its nuclear ambitions. The President of that country not only denies the horrific crime of the holocaust, but also threatens Israel today with destruction. It seems to me that there should be no place for this type of behaviour, and it should not find acceptance in a modern, democratic world. Our group expects that the European Commission under your leadership will resolutely oppose the undemocratic procedures and undemocratic policies of the present authorities in Iran, which are directed against our greatest ally in the Middle East – against the state of Israel.
We also expect – and I am pleased that this always comes through strongly in what you say, Mr President – that the foreign policy of the European Union will always be a banner for citizens’ freedoms, and that it will also promote our common European values beyond our borders.
I am sure that you did not manage to avoid making mistakes in the previous Parliamentary term, but then no-one who is involved in politics avoids making mistakes – that, unfortunately, is the way things are in this world. However, in the hard work which you do undertake, we are counting on you to hold high the banner of European values, and to work for the good – and I would like to stress this – of a common and united Europe."@en1
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