Tuarascáil focal ar fhocal na n-imeachtaí

Dé Céadaoin, 9 Márta 2022 - Strasbourg

8. Díospóireacht le Príomhaire na hEastóine, Kaja Kallas - Ról AE i ndomhan athraitheach agus staid slándála na hEorpa tar éis ionsaitheacht agus ionradh na Rúise ar an Úcráin (díospóireacht ar lean)

  President. – We will now continue with the debate with the Prime Minister of Estonia, Kaja Kallas, on the EU’s role in a changing world and the security situation of Europe following the Russian aggression and invasion of Ukraine (2022/2583(RSP)).

  Νίκος Ανδρουλάκης (S&D). – Κυρία Πρόεδρε, η άνοιξη φέτος δεν ήρθε για τα παιδιά της Ουκρανίας. Η εισβολή του Πούτιν είναι μια παράνομη και βάρβαρη πράξη, που βυθίζει στην καταστροφή και την απελπισία έναν ολόκληρο λαό. Δυστυχώς ζούμε προκλήσεις που τις θεωρούσαμε ένα πολύ άσχημο και μακρινό παρελθόν. Η τυφλή προσήλωση των ευρωπαϊκών κυβερνήσεων στα οικονομικά τους συμφέροντα υποτίμησε τις επικίνδυνες αυτοκρατορικές αναθεωρητικές ιδέες του Πούτιν αλλά και του Ερντογάν. Με έναν τραγικό πλέον τρόπο ανοίγει μια νέα εποχή. Η Ένωση οφείλει να αποκτήσει τα μέσα και να υπερασπιστεί τις αξίες της απέναντι στον φρικτό τυραννικό δεσποτισμό. Η ενιαία εξωτερική πολιτική και άμυνα, η ενεργειακή αυτονομία, είναι προτεραιότητες. Ο ευρωστρατός, τα κοινά εξοπλιστικά προγράμματα, οι ισχυρές οικονομικές κυρώσεις και το εμπάργκο όπλων είναι εργαλεία που μπορούν να περιφρουρήσουν την ευημερία μας και τα σύνορά μας, από την Εσθονία και τη Φινλανδία μέχρι την Ελλάδα και την Κύπρο. Δεν ζητώ σε καμία περίπτωση να επιστρέψει η Ευρώπη στον μιλιταρισμό, αλλά πρέπει να κάνουμε ό,τι περνάει από το χέρι μας ώστε να μην επιτρέψουμε την επιστροφή του.

  Luis Garicano (Renew). – Madam President, Madam Prime Minister, Mr Borrell, thanks very much, both of you, for your leadership.

But let me ask the question, dear colleagues, are we doing enough to help Ukrainians? The sad answer is no. True, we are arming the Ukrainians, Madam Prime Minister, you talked about the half a billion euros peace facility. But the truth is that we’re spending many more resources arming Putin. Today, every day, we’re sending EUR 1 billion to pay for our oil and gas, etc. to Putin. Why? Our leaders tell us that we might fall in a recession if we stop doing that. Come on, dear colleagues, that hypocrisy has to stop. The moral and strategic arguments of not arming our enemies are obvious, but so are the economic arguments. Our economies will suffer much more as a result of a slowly escalating and long-lasting war than if we bankrupt Putin now if we make it impossible for him to pay wages, pensions and the salaries of his military.

Prime Minister Kallas, Mr Borrell, let’s bite the bullet now. Not buying Russian gas is bearable for our economies. What is unbearable is continuing to pay for Putin’s murders.

  Riho Terras (PPE). – Madam President, Madam Prime Minister, dear Kaja, thank you very much for being with us in this Hemicycle today. And I also want to join the people who have thanked you for your leadership in these very difficult times.

I certainly agree with the assumption that we are in there in this for a long haul. That makes us responsible of making the right decisions today. That demands from us committing adequate resources and building up the European Pillar of Defence, together with NATO. This pillar must not be an oversized construct or an empty buzzword, but a well-funded and coordinated effort, which means, if not today, then when should we reach the 2% of minimum of defence spending in all of Europe?

But at the moment we need to act as one to paralyze Putin. Full embargo and the deepest cuts against aggression, combined with maximum military support, air defence, planes to Ukraine. Thank you. Slava Ukraini!

  Miapetra Kumpula-Natri (S&D). – Madam President, I would like to welcome to the European Parliament the prime minister of a neighbouring country, dear Kaja. In Finland and Estonia, we share the same external border with Russia, the country that brutally, alone, attacked Ukraine. We share historical memories, too. When Sweden decided now to send military equipment to Russia, it was first time since 1939 – when they helped Finland in the winter war. Be sure that we are now discussing several proposals to strengthen the Union and strengthen our security, and this is done in a democratic way.

A new era was brutally started by Russia on 24 February. Our sanctions were not enough and our actions were not enough after the occupation of Crimea, and now we see attacks against a democratic rule—based system and against innocent civilians. The two past weeks show that we have not imposed enough sanctions. The attack on Ukraine is not only the concern of a sovereign state, but the horrifying fact that war is in Europe. The concern is also for the whole of humanity. It is important to see that crossing the border and breaking the rules also had causes and the International Criminal Court (ICC) is opening an investigation into the alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Ukraine. The EU has been leading now and transatlantic relations are very important, to be sure.

Dear President, in this very room, we will have an opportunity this weekend to build a better, more secure Europe, by the citizens and for the citizens, when we talk in the Conference on the Future of Europe.

  Nils Torvalds (Renew). – Madam President, High Representative. Kallis Kaja, tere tulemast tagasi parlamenti, ainult veidi teises rollis. During the last few days, I have had flashbacks from my years as a correspondent in Russia. I covered the first war in Chechnya and I saw the catastrophic results of moral decay in the Russian army. And a morally decayed or derailed army is something very, very dangerous. And we see the same political decay inside the walls of the Kremlin.

Today, with the tragic results for Ukraine, for the young men, for the mothers and the children, we see the result of this moral catastrophe. Who wanted this? If you use the words of Yevtushenko’s poem ‘Khotyat li russkiye voyny?’ (Do the Russians want war?), there is a sentence saying ‘You ask those soldiers that lie under the birches, and let their sons tell you, ‘khotyat li russkiye voyny’ (whether the Russians want war). The Russians don’t want the war.

The one who’s wanting it is Mr Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin. Let us make this his last wish.

  Paulo Rangel (PPE). – Madam President, I would say to the Prime Minister that she has just said that her mother taught her that saying ‘I told you’ was rather impolite; it may be impolite, and it won’t change the past, but it can be very useful. I hope that today everybody in this House and every leader in the European Union has heard you and has listened to your advice, your proposals and your views. Then we won’t need to say ‘I told you’ any more.

A resposta a dar a Vladimir Putin tem de ser uma resposta clara. É tempo agora de banir as compras de gás e de petróleo à Rússia. O próximo Conselho Europeu, este Conselho informal, deve dar esse passo. Ele implica sacrifícios, implica perdas, mas é a única forma de não estarmos a financiar a guerra de Putin, de não estarmos a financiar a destruição da Ucrânia.

  Raphaël Glucksmann (S&D). – Madame la Présidente, Monsieur le Haut Représentant, l’avenir de l’Europe se décide dans les ruines de Marioupol et de Kharkiv, dans les rues de Kiev et d’Odessa. Si nous n’arrêtons pas Poutine en Ukraine, nous ne connaîtrons plus la paix sur notre continent.

Alors, nous n’interviendrons pas militairement, mais nous pouvons faire bien plus que ce que nous faisons aujourd’hui. Chaque jour, nous finançons à hauteur de plus de 600 millions d’euros la machine de guerre qui rase des villes et des villages. Chaque jour, nos importations de gaz et de pétrole permettent de détruire des écoles et des hôpitaux.

Alors il est temps d’y mettre fin. Oui, cette décision coûtera à nos nations, mais nos États ont les moyens de faire face, d’aider les ménages, de mettre à contribution les géants de l’énergie. Le «quoi qu’il en coûte» de la pandémie vaut pour la paix et la liberté en Europe. Si le prix de l’inaction est élevé, celui de l’action, eh bien! nous pouvons le relever.

Chers collègues, la politique, en dernière instance, c’est cette question: savoir quel prix une cité est prête à payer pour sa liberté et sa souveraineté. De la réponse que nous apporterons collectivement à cette question dépend l’avenir de l’Ukraine, mais aussi l’avenir de l’Europe.

  Francisco José Millán Mon (PPE). – Señora presidenta, con la agresión rusa a Ucrania, estamos en un escenario geopolítico nuevo: la Rusia de Putin opta por convertirse abiertamente en una enemiga, ignora nuestros valores y desata una guerra. Tenemos en nuestras fronteras del este un adversario cruel que ignora el Derecho internacional e incluso amenaza con el empleo de armas nucleares.

Para la Unión Europea, las elecciones creo que son claras. Además de la necesaria solidaridad con Ucrania y sus ciudadanos, tenemos tres prioridades bien conocidas. Primero: reforzar seriamente nuestra política exterior y de defensa —afortunadamente, estamos ya en esa línea—; segundo: diversificar nuestro aprovisionamiento energético, es decir, reducir drásticamente nuestra dependencia de la Rusia de Putin; tercero, reforzar nuestras relaciones con Estados Unidos, con una Administración, como la de Biden, mucho más sensible y cercana a los intereses europeos que la anterior Administración.

La Unión debe aumentar también sus vínculos con la OTAN y con los países afines en este mundo multipolar, si bien un eventual acercamiento entre Rusia y China podría hacerlo evolucionar hacia un orden bipolar de autoritarismo frente a democracia.

  Željana Zovko (PPE). – Madam President, the events in Ukraine have struck us all. The violence is a threat to our European peace and it is still unclear what consequences the war will have on our lives. I lived through war. I know what war means.

One thing is certain: the world has changed and the EU has changed with it. Within days, even hours, European Member States have shown their unity by condemning the aggression and by taking concrete measures to safeguard our security. Over the last two weeks, we have witnessed why European strategic sovereignty is so crucial. The EU is showing that it has the leverage and the power to make proactive policies, to reduce its dependency, and to increase its cooperation with like-minded partners.

Although the end game is not yet in sight, let us use this clear momentum to create a real security union. Let us improve our resilience and defence capacity, based on a strong strategic compass, in cooperation with our transatlantic partners. While managing the crisis today, we should ensure our peace and stability for tomorrow. Let’s work for peace – because families and those who are fearing for their loved ones only want peace at this moment.

  François-Xavier Bellamy (PPE). – Madame la Présidente, inutile de rappeler les constats très justes que nous venons d’entendre, je voudrais simplement rappeler un point qui nous concerne tous, bien au-delà de ces murs. Avec l’invasion de l’Ukraine, ce n’est pas seulement la liberté et la souveraineté du peuple ukrainien qui sont menacées – peuple auquel nous devons notre solidarité. Ce sont aussi les principes nécessaires à la paix du monde.

Jamais, jamais une grande nation ne devrait résoudre quelque désaccord que ce soit par la violence. Jamais non plus une armée n’a le droit de s’en prendre à des civils, de bombarder, comme nous l’avons vu ces dernières heures, des cibles qui n’ont aucune nécessité militaire et jusqu’à des couloirs d’évacuation par où des familles fuient la guerre. Rappeler cela, ce n’est pas de l’idéalisme naïf, c’est rappeler le droit international. Même la guerre a ses règles. Il y a mille ans déjà, l’Europe savait que les armes n’ont pas tous les droits et elle a payé cher à chaque fois qu’elle l’a oublié.

À toutes les forces russes impliquées dans ce conflit, par la volonté destructrice qui voudrait nous faire croire qu’à nouveau la violence l’emporte sur le droit, nous devons rappeler ce principe simple: nous avons tous une conscience, nous sommes tous responsables, définitivement. Un jour, la justice passera.

Et maintenant, il est temps de montrer ce que veut dire être un homme. Pour nous, Européens, qui avons trop longtemps cru que la guerre était derrière nous, il est temps de rappeler enfin que c’est trahir les principes dont nous avons hérité que d’être trop désarmés pour pouvoir les défendre au moment du danger.

  Antonio López-Istúriz White (PPE). – Madam President, it was Sir Winston Churchill that said that democracy means that if the doorbell rings in the early hours, it is likely to be the milkman. Well, ladies and gentlemen, these days it is not the milkman ringing our doorbells, but bombs, missiles, misery and pain. Authoritarian regimes that want to destroy our liberties, our freedoms and our way of life are ringing that doorbell. Make no mistake: we are the main course on Putin’s menu.

Only through the brave and courageous resistance of our Ukrainian brothers and sisters, only through our help to those who fight for democracy and European ideals in Georgia, in Moldova, in Belarus, in the Balkans and even in Russia, will we prevail. Thanks to them, we might give an opportunity to our children to live the democratic dream. Let’s fight, outside and inside this European Union, the enemies of our liberties. Let’s start by cleaning our House of populists and extremists financed by Moscow, Caracas or Tehran. Europe, this is a wake—up call. Let’s show the world our desire to have the milkman at our doorstep.

  President. – That brings us back to Prime Minister Kallas. You see that you enjoy the full support of this House in the work that we can do together. Over to you.

  Kaja Kallas, Prime Minister of Estonia. – Madam President, I would like to thank all the Members for this very, very good debate. I think we are very much agreeing on different topics, but I will just point out a few things that I wanted to react to.

First of all, we have been very united during this as the EU, also with our transatlantic partners, and we should keep it this way. It’s going to be tougher because Putin wants to see us divided. Let’s not give them this pleasure. Let’s stay united. I think that’s very important.

Second, there were some calls for making agreements regarding the security architecture. The problem is that the goal of Putin, or Russia, is to get those agreements because he knows that one of the values of the European Union is that we respect agreements – pacta sunt servanda, which means that we follow the agreements – whereas the Russian side is never going to follow them. So when we talk about disarmament or we talk about taking down military exercises or limiting defence, it actually means that we are making ourselves weaker because the other side is not going to follow those agreements, and we should not do that.

There was also somebody who said here that expanding NATO, taking new members into NATO, would be provoking Russia. Well, it’s not provoking Russia. Every country has the right to decide in which union or alliance it wants to be. It’s not up to any other country to say that you can’t be there. And I remind you, NATO is a defence alliance. It’s not attacking anybody. It’s meant to be there for defending the countries that are in this alliance. And from what we see right now, it’s very much necessary. So we shouldn’t fall into that trap.

Regarding the sanctions, I think we should also think about how one side is seizing assets, but the other side is also confiscating assets, so that we can use the means from those assets to build up Ukraine. And therefore, if this signal goes out, then it also means for every bullet that they fire, for every building that they destroy, they’re going to pay for this. They’re going to build this from their own money. It’s coming from their pockets. I think it has to be very clear regarding this.

On energy, we have to understand that it’s going to hurt. And of course, Ukrainians are suffering now, and I do agree with those who have said that we shouldn’t finance the war machine of Putin, but we also have to understand that some of the countries in Europe are 100% dependent on Russian gas – Bulgaria, for example. If we don’t have alternatives, it’s going to hurt them a lot and maybe so much that there is not going to be unity within Europe. We have to see what the alternatives are, how we can help those countries so that it wouldn’t be so hard on their populations.

Some Members said that we, the EU, have emerged stronger from the crisis and I do agree with this. We have built on the lessons that we learned from the debt crisis, which enabled us to be better in the health crisis. We had all the funds ready to react to a possible economic fall. But now we also have to use the lessons learned from previous crises to be stronger and I do agree we are stronger here as well.

And the last point – no, one more point before the last point – and that is that the representative of the EPP Group from France said that the defence clause for Article 42(7) (TEU) has never been used, but actually, that is not correct. It has been used once – and it was for France – because of the Bataclan crisis, so I just wanted to correct that. And if some countries who are not members of NATO, like Finland and Sweden, need this article to be in force right now to feel more secure, then we should agree on this. I think we are not giving anything away.

And the last point is about the Ukrainian perspective to join Europe. I think what the Ukrainians need right now is hope. They are literally fighting for Europe in Ukraine, and the least we can do is give them this hope and say that ‘yes, you are part of Europe; you are welcome in our family’.

  President. – Thank you very much, Prime Minister Kallas. Thank you to all the colleagues who participated in this debate and stayed until this time.

The debate is closed.

Written statements (Rule 171)

  Andrus Ansip (Renew), kirjalikult. – Olen uhke, et Eesti oli üks esimesi riike, kes saatis Ukrainale Javelin tankitõrjerelvi. Olen uhke ka selle üle, et Leedu oli üks esimesi riike, kes saatis Ukrainasse Stingereid. Eesti ja Leedu tegid seda ajal, mil väga paljudes Euroopa riikides avalik arvamus selliseid relvasaadetisi sõjakoldesse ei soosinud. Olen tänulik Saksamaale ja kõigile riikidele, kes Ukrainale relvaabi on andnud. Agressiooni peatamiseks tuleb Venemaa täielikult isoleerida. Koheselt tuleb peatada Vene gaasi ja nafta ostmine. Vene sõjamasina finantseerimine tuleb lõpetada. Ukrainale tuleb kohe anda Euroopa Liiduga liitumise perspektiiv.

  Ádám Kósa (NI), írásban. – Tisztelt Elnök Úr! Európában nem lehet háború újra. Mindannyiunk közös érdeke, hogy Ukrajnában mielőbb visszaálljon a béke. Meg kell akadályozni, hogy a háború Ukrajnán túlra terjedjen. Üdvözlöm, hogy a NATO ennek megfelelően, felelősségteljesen jár el. Stratégiai nyugalomra és felelősségtudatra van szükség. Minden olyan lépést kerülni kell, amely belerángatná hazánkat a szomszédban zajló háborúba, veszélybe sodorva a magyar emberek biztonságát.

Magyarország elkötelezett a béke helyreállítása mellett. Személyesen tapasztalom, hogy rengeteg magyar civil szervezet, közöttük fogyatékossággal élőkkel foglalkozók is segítenek a menekülteken. Magyarország egyik legnagyobb humanitárius akciója zajlik most. Éppen ezért értetlenül állok az ellenünk gerjesztett rosszindulatú álhírek és dezinformációk előtt, amelyek akár a határ túloldalán élő magyarok biztonságát is veszélyeztetik. Kérek mindenkit, fejezzék be ezt. Békére van szükségünk!

  Sirpa Pietikäinen (PPE), kirjallinen. – Venäjä on EU-maiden merkittävä maakaasun toimittaja ja ajankohtainen energiakriisi on vahvistanut entisestään sen markkina-asemaa, kun Eurooppa elää pahinta energiakriisiä sitten vuoden 1973. Loppusyksystä lähtien maakaasun markkinahinta on noussut raketin lailla ja raakaöljyn hinta on korkeimmillaan vuosikausiin. Hintojen nousu ja niihin kohdistuneet tuet eivät ainoastaan ole kasvattaneet rahavirtaa kaasun ja öljyn tuottajille, vaan paisuttaneet Venäjän sotakassaa. Putinin sotarikosten tukemista eurooppalaisten kustannuksella ei tule katsoa läpi sormien, vaan tarvitaan omavaraisuuden lisäämistä panostamalla uusiutuviin energianlähteisiin. Energiaturvallisuuden on oltava EU:n strategisen autonomian ytimessä. Komission tulee mitä pikimmiten pyrkiä vieroittautumaan venäläisestä kaasusta, alkaen sen rajaamisesta ulos EU-taksonomiasta. Venäläisen kaasun ja ydinvoiman leimaaminen nyt vihreäksi keskellä sotaa on myös ristiriidassa kaikkien sanktioiden kanssa ja myös heikentää Euroopan uskottavuutta.

  Alfred Sant (S&D), in writing. – The Russian invasion of Ukraine stems out of a longstanding instability in the European security architecture resulting from the collapse of the USSR that was glossed over. Yet, none of the concerns Russia might have can excuse the ongoing war it has launched. Today, it is understandable that Member States feel the need to upgrade their military capabilities, as well as to coordinate this at a pan-European level. Nonetheless, neutral countries must retain the option to stay out of any long-term commitment equating to a military alliance. Yet, bread and butter issues remain fundamental to the internal security of Europe. There is the urgent need for EU-level coordination on very basic issues. To start with, a secure and stable supply of energy. The Commission’s long-term push towards the liberalisation of the energy markets is, in this current juncture, showing major weaknesses. Energy supplies and their security cannot be left to the management of private interests operating under ‘free’ market conditions. The war in Ukraine is also putting under threat the concept of secure food supplies at affordable prices. Finally, a thorough assessment of the contagion risks that a Russia default would bring to the European economic and financial system is needed. Concrete measures in this regard must be taken.

  Christine Schneider (PPE), schriftlich. – Der Einmarsch Russlands in die Ukraine markiert den Beginn einer neuen Ära für Europa und die Welt. Ich stimme der estnischen Ministerpräsidentin zu: Wir müssen unsere Energieabhängigkeit von russischem Gas und Öl verringern und die europäische Verteidigung verknüpft mit der NATO stärken. Die brutale Aggression des russischen Präsidenten Wladimir Putin sind erschreckend und ich bewundere die ukrainische Armee und das ukrainische Volk, die für ihr Land, die Freiheit, die Demokratie und die gemeinsamen europäischen Werte kämpfen.

  Tom Vandenkendelaere (PPE), schriftelijk. – De geopolitieke spanningen aan onze oostflank lopen dramatisch op door de brutale Russische agressie tegen Oekraïne. Europa veroordeelt niet alleen in woorden maar ook in daden de uitgelokte oorlog door de Russische Federatie. Aanzienlijke vooruitgang bij de opwaardering van ons gemeenschappelijk veiligheids- en defensiebeleid is nodig en het “Kiev-moment” voedt het politieke momentum, vooral dankzij een hervonden bereidheid in Washington om de trans-Atlantische betrekkingen te cultiveren en de samenwerking tussen de EU en de NAVO te versterken, dankzij de ontwikkeling van een nieuw strategisch kompas van de EU met een opvallende nadruk op de daadwerkelijke uitvoering ervan, en dankzij de herziening van het strategisch concept van de NAVO, die niet op een beter moment had kunnen komen. Op de Europese top in Versailles is een duidelijk startschot gegeven om de afhankelijkheid van de EU op verschillende belangrijke beleidsterreinen, waaronder het brede terrein van het buitenlands, veiligheids- en defensiebeleid, te verminderen.

  Monika Vana (Verts/ALE), in writing. – The European Union is and must remain a union of peace. All EU Member States together already have the second highest military expenditure in the world. I am therefore extremely critical of the additional militarisation of the EU, including increases in defence spending – which are also largely bypassing the European Parliament and its scrutiny function. As a member of a neutral state, I would also like to stress the role that neural countries can play in regards to mediation, dialogue, civil crisis aid, humanitarian engagement and reconstruction efforts after a war. We need an additional investment Programme for climate and social infrastructure, not new military armament!

  Henna Virkkunen (PPE), kirjallinen. – Kiitos pääministeri Kallas erinomaisesta puheenvuorosta. On ollut rohkaisevaa nähdä, kuinka yhtenäisesti paitsi EU myös koko länsiliittouma on vastannut Venäjän aggressioon ja tukenut Ukrainaa. Viro yhdessä muiden Baltian maiden kanssa on näyttänyt tässä vahvaa esimerkkiä koko EU:lle. Ukraina tarvitsee taistelussa kaiken tukemme. Venäjän raakalaismaiset iskut on saatava poikki. Oli erittäin tärkeä avaus, että EU rahoittaa myös suoraan Ukrainan asehankintoja. Seuraavaksi EU-jäsenmaiden pitää lopettaa öljyn ja kaasun ostot Venäjältä. Se todella iskisi lopullisesti Venäjän talouteen. On kestämätöntä, että samalla kun sanktioimme isosti Venäjän taloutta, kuitenkin samalla rahoitamme sotaa satojen miljoonien energiaostoilla joka päivä. EU:n riippuvuus Venäjän energiasta on tehnyt meistä heikon. Sen seurauksena EU-maat eivät riittävän vahvasti kyenneet sanktiomaan Venäjää heti Krimin laittoman miehityksen jälkeen. Todella vahvoihin toimiin lähdettiin vasta nyt ison hyökkäyssodan alettua. EU:n energiariippuvuudesta on tehtävä loppu. Tällä viikolla EU-komissio esitteli REPowerEU-toimenpidelistan, jolla energiariippuvuus Venäjästä saataisiin poikki. Aikataulu on kuitenkin pettymys, sillä komissio tavoittelee riippuvuuden loppumista vasta vuoteen 2030 mennessä. Tarvitsemme paljon nopeampia toimia. EU-jäsenmaiden on lopetettava venäläisten fossiilisten energialähteiden käyttö ja lisättävä investointeja puhtaisiin teknologioihin ja energian varastointiin. Totta kai energiaostojen lopettaminen iskee jäsenmaihin, mutta niin iskee myös sota. Venäjän kaikki loputkin pankit on irrotettava Swift-järjestelmästä. Samat toimet on ulotettava myös Valko-Venäjään, joka on tukenut Venäjän hyökkäystä.

  Marco Zanni (ID), per iscritto. – L'aggressione dell'Ucraina da parte della Russia è un atto sconsiderato che è nostro dovere contrastare. Tuttavia, nei giorni scorsi ho sentito alcuni colleghi parlare con troppa leggerezza di guerra e di intervento militare da parte europea, senza considerare le conseguenze e i rischi che potrebbero comportare: ritengo che le sanzioni siano state un passo importante, ma ora deve essere la diplomazia a portarci verso la risoluzione del conflitto.

Ciononostante, va anche riconosciuto che lo sforzo diplomatico e la capacità di mediazione dell'UE sono rese molto più difficili dalla dipendenza energetica dalla Russia. L'incapacità di essere autonomi e di diversificare i fornitori ci ha reso vulnerabili alle pretese del regime russo e rischia di far ricadere il peso economico della guerra sui nostri cittadini.

Questa stessa dipendenza energetica sta anche mostrando gli aspetti più critici della transizione verde. In poche settimane siamo passati dai "bisticci" sulla tassonomia verde all'unanime approvazione di utilizzare le centrali nucleari e a carbone, sottolineando la netta distinzione tra obiettivi ideologici e pragmatici.

Vorrei concludere accogliendo con favore l'intenzione di diversi paesi di rinnovare il proprio impegno di spesa verso la NATO. Ritengo che questa crisi ci ricordi l'importanza della fiducia e dell'alleanza che abbiamo con i nostri partner oltreoceano.

  Carlos Zorrinho (S&D), por escrito. – Face à agressão e invasão russa da Ucrânia, a União Europeia uniu-se numa resposta coordenada e robusta impulsionada pela expressão livre e democrática das suas opiniões públicas. Essa resposta não pode, no entanto, deixar de expor também as suas fragilidades, designadamente na dependência externa para a sua segurança e defesa, na dependência energética e na relativa desproteção em relação aos processos de desinformação e ataques cibernéticos. A boa articulação no contexto da NATO, valorizando o eixo transatlântico da segurança global e a coordenação de esforços dos Estados-Membros, permitiu ao Vice-Presidente da Comissão Europeia e Alto Representante para a Política Externa afirmar que a invasão russa da Ucrânia marcou «o ato de nascimento de uma União Europeia geopolítica». Esta proclamação tem um sentido. Já não basta a diplomacia, embora ela continue a ser decisiva, para que a União Europeia garanta a sua relevância e sobretudo a sua segurança e defesa. Mantendo a perspetiva multilateral que faz parte da sua essência e dos seus valores e princípios, é preciso reforçar a aliança de segurança e defesa e dotá-la dos meios necessários para garantir a proteção da União e projetar a sua visão de paz e liberdade no contexto global.

(The sitting was suspended at 12.57)

PRESIDENZA DELL'ON. PINA PICIERNO
Vicepresidente