Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2010-01-20-Speech-3-021"
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"en.20100120.3.3-021"2
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"I am delighted to be in this very special forum with the President of the Spanish Government, someone whom I have valued very highly since the time when he was a strong law student.
I think that by chance, the rotating Presidency of the European Union has given my country the best possible opportunity to demonstrate once again that Spain wants to play a decisive role in Europe.
As the President said, joining Europe was a dream for the people of Spain during the long years of the dictatorship. We are therefore especially happy to be here and we relish the experience, because we know, ladies and gentlemen, that this Union of Member States which we represent here is the only answer to the problems that the world faces, since traditional States are incapable of finding effective solutions.
It is very important for Europe to find its place by defining itself and defending the values that it created in the cradle of revolutions, in the books written by its brilliant minds, and in the cries of its peoples. Those values are freedom, the rule of reason, laicism and solidarity. I therefore know, Mr President, that you want to make the most of this opportunity to put the Treaty of Lisbon into practice.
I agree with the objectives that you have proposed, although some of them are vague and also do not manage to distinguish matters which are incidental from those which are fundamental. One of the objectives, which concerns climate change, makes me think that the European policy implemented by the Commission is the right one, even though it failed in Copenhagen. What is important is that the waste of so many nations has to stop, because billions of earth’s inhabitants should not have to suffer the consequences of the selfishness of rich societies.
I would also place more emphasis on defending human rights in the world. When the European Union is accused of being a bureaucratic organisation with no soul, people forget that its soul is our Charter of Fundamental Rights. In this respect, I believe that the Spanish Presidency should involve itself in the following matters: it should not hold the Morocco Summit until Morocco commits to complying with the resolutions made regarding the Sahara by the United Nations, a body that you have invoked on other occasions.
In Cuba and Iran, you should promote joint action for the recognition of the organisations that oppose the governments, in line with the debate that took place here yesterday. If rights are our soul, the soul of Europe, I will venture to remind you that you place a great emphasis, as you rightly said in your speech, on the backbone of Europe being a common energy policy. Without this, everything is held back and even international policy runs the risk of evaporating like smoke.
Finally, I would like to remind you not to forget your commitment to giving the cities of Ceuta and Melilla status similar to that of the most remote regions.
I will conclude: esteemed President Zapatero, my dear friend José Luis, I wish you every success for the good of this strong, federal Europe in which we both believe."@en1
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