English
The European Parliament, with 401 votes in favor, 284 votes against, 15 abstentions and 7 null votes, decided yesterday to grant Ursula von der Leyen a new mandate as President of the European Commission, despite the fact that the EU Court of Justice ruled a day before the Community Executive did not respect the rules of transparency in the conclusion of contracts for the purchase of anti-Covid vaccines and despite the criminal files in which von der Leyen is accused by several people and organizations of committing several crimes in connection with that purchase.
Before MEPs cast their vote, there was a debate in the plenary of the Parliament in which Ursula von der Leyen presented the directions that the Commission will follow in its next mandate.
Defense, competitiveness, the continuation of the Green Deal, dialogue for a new common agricultural policy and the realization of social housing were the key points of the program that Ursula von der Leyen presented to the MEPs for her future 5-year mandate at the head of the European Commission.
Regarding competitiveness, von der Leyen stated: "Our competitiveness needs a strong boost because we are witnessing a change in the foundations of the global economy and those who will not be competitive will become dependent. That is why I propose that Europe move into a higher gear. Businesses need to run faster, we need less reporting and easy procedures for granting authorizations or permits. (...) I want us to check the situation of SMEs, which need better regulation, because they are the backbone of the European economy. That's why we have to stop doing micromanagement, and instead give more incentives to SMEs because they deserve them".
She proposed the continuation of the Green Deal and the setting of the 90% target for the year 2040 regarding economic decarbonisation, but also the conclusion of a green industrial agreement/pact.
The President of the European Commission pointed out: "Europe needs more investments in agriculture, industry, digital technologies, but also in people and their skills. That is why we want to perfect the capital market and mobilize more private funds, because at the moment this European market is fragmented and, because of this, annually 300 billion euros go to foreign markets. That is why I will propose the realization of a Union of savings and investments, because innovative start-ups no longer have to go to the USA and Asia to expand. We need the single deep capital market, a liquid market that allows start-ups to scale. In order to have more private investments, however, public funding is also needed. We need greater investment capacity, focused on policies, simpler for Member States. That is why I propose the creation of a European fund for competitiveness, which will focus on joint cross-border projects, which will stimulate development and strengthen the implementation of the green industrial pact".
That pact would be presented by Ursula von der Leyen within a maximum of 100 days from the start of the new mandate, and the document will channel investments in infrastructure, in clean energies, to continue the course of decarbonization and reindustrialization.
• Strengthening security and defense at European level
Related to the problems faced by European farmers in recent years, the future Commission would initiate a strategic dialogue on the future of agriculture in the EU, and farmers, NGOs and those in the supply chains will be invited to the negotiation table establish together a new European agri-food strategy.
Ursula von der Leyen stated: "The position of farmers in the value chain must be strengthened and more incentives, innovation and access to capital are needed to have sustainable, sustainable agriculture. Farmers who do this will be rewarded accordingly."
The President of the European Commission also pointed out that Europe is facing a housing crisis, as apartment prices and rents are rising. That is why von der Leyen said that he will appoint a European commissioner who will deal directly with this subject, for the realization of a European plan on affordable housing and the unlocking of public and private investments in this area.
Regarding security and defense, according to Mrs. von der Leyen, the European Defense Union will be built, based on a single defense market, which will have high-tech defense capabilities, but also a common air defense system. The President of the European Commission also said that the Europolice staff will be doubled, in order for the European agency to become truly operational, and that the Frontex staff will be tripled, reaching 30,000 employees who will deal with the defense of the EU's borders and the management of migration. Regarding the management of illegal migration, von der Leyen indicated that she will appoint a European Commissioner who will deal strictly with the Mediterranean region and work on an agenda for this area together with the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas.
Ursula von der Leyen also mentioned the future creation of a European democracy shield, which will fight against information manipulation and foreign interference in the EU.
Regarding the enlargement of the Union, the president of the European Commission mentioned that the accession of the candidate states will be based on merit and that the respective countries must be fully prepared before the accession. She stated that the place of the states of the Western Balkans, Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova and Georgia is in the European Union.
• Pro-European parties supported von der Leyen's candidacy
The democratic, pro-European parties supported Ursula von der Leyen's candidacy for the head of the European Commission. Manfred Weber, the president of the EPP showed that the program of the president of the European Commission is one that promotes equity and prosperity as priorities of the European Union and that through the vote of June 9, 2024 the citizens chose "a democratic, not radical Europe, a united, not divided Europe" .
Iratxe Garcia Perez, president of the Alliance of Socialists and Democrats (S&D) said that the vote given by the deputies of this political group for Ursula von der Leyen is conditional on the achievement of the program of social equity, equal opportunities, competitiveness of Europe and the achievement of justice social.
Jordan Bardella, president of the political group European Patriots, argued that the future of Europe depends on the sovereignty of the member states and the achievement of strategic autonomy for Europe, and indicated that this is why they oppose the re-election of Ursula von der Leyen.
Nicola Proccacini, representative of the Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) said that the vote on von der Leyen would be based on the national interest of each member party of the political group, while Valerie Hayer stated that the Renew group would vote for Ursula's reinstatement von der Leyen, asking her to include the right to abortion in the Fundamental Charter of Human Rights.
Terry Reintke, the president of the European Greens, argued that the vote of democratic, pro-European forces is needed to isolate the extremist parties in the European Parliament and asked Mrs. von der Leyen to continue the implementation of the Green Deal, to ensure that the state of right and campaign for the abolition of the right of veto in the European Council and the Council of the European Union.
In contrast, Manon Aubry, co-chair of the European Left, said Ursula von der Leyen had protected multinational companies, offered no protection to European farmers or those working in public services, and had shown lack of transparency on procurement contracts of anti-Covid 19 vaccines.
Ewa Zajaczkowska-Hernik, representative of the political group of the European Sovereigns, said that von der Leyen is responsible for the destruction of European agriculture and the insecurity in Europe following the implementation of the Migration Pact.
Victor Negrescu, vice-president of the European Parliament and deputy from PSD/S&D said: "Today we are facing an important vote for the next European Commission but also regarding the way we want to shape the future of Europe. After seeing what happened today in plenary, we, the delegation of the Social Democratic Party, call for responsibility and, at the same time, underline the priorities we have for the future Commission. We are firmly convinced that more must be done to achieve Romania's full accession to the space Schengen At the same time, we want to underline the need for better policies that allow Europe to remain an economic leader, with a strong industry, dynamic SMEs and an adequate budget to meet the challenges we face. And we believe that we can actively contribute to this. Finally, we need more support for farmers, rural areas, as well as local investment. Equal pay for equal work also means fair subsidies for our farmers and at the same time the policy of cohesion must remain the core of regional development. We want a Commission that is in touch with citizens and comes up with solutions that meet their need for better living conditions, and we believe that we can work together to achieve this."
For his part, Siegfried Muresan, vice-president of the EPP, said: "We must be united and aware of our responsibility and we must defend the European Union from those who receive orders from Moscow and Beijing. Thanks to the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, Europe is safer today than it was 5 years ago. We no longer depend on Russia for our energy. We are strong and more independent. We are greener, more digital and more competitive. Ursula von der Leyen is a candidate for the presidency of the European Commission prepared to serve Europe and has a program that reflects the priorities of all those who believe in a strong and united European Union. We need to strengthen EU instruments, including the Community budget, and outline the budget for the multiannual financial framework post 2027 on the basic architecture, but with the views of the European Parliament included. We need to establish that whoever asks for European funds must respect European values".
Following the vote of the European Parliament, President Roberta Metsola will submit to the European Council the decision regarding the appointment of Ursula von der Leyen as President of the European Commission, and in the following period each of the 27 member states will designate the person who would occupy a position of European Commissioner.
• Şoşoacă evicted from the European Parliament; opposition is accepted, but not slander
Yesterday, Diana Iovanovici-Şoşoacă was evicted from the European Parliament, a democratic institution where the opposition is accepted - proof that the representatives of far-right political groups gave their speeches in the plenary session where Ursula von der Leyen's candidacy for the position of president was debated European Commission - but the bribery is kept at the door. And when she still manages to sneak into the Strasbourg Hemicycle, as Diana Şoşoacă did with the votes of 450,040 Romanian citizens - of which 30,000 are from the Diaspora -, there are all the prerequisites for her to be excluded from the hall.
Soşoaca does not understand an elementary thing, simple arithmetic. If she was voted by 450,040 citizens to become a European deputy, that does not mean that she was voted by Romania, as she stated before being removed from the plenary hall in Strasbourg. 450,040 citizens who voted for you means only 2% of the total of 18,978,908 citizens with the right to vote on June 9, 2024 - according to the data published on the website of the Permanent Electoral Authority. If we refer to the number of citizens who voted for the European Parliament, out of the 8,942,629 votes validly cast, SOS received only 5%, i.e. the necessary threshold that allowed Diana Iovanovici-Şoşoacă and her party colleague, Luis Lazarus, to become MEPs in the period 2024-2029. However, given the low percentages, you cannot say that Romania voted for you. Because following such an abnormal logic, the independent deputy Nicu Ştefănuţă, who was recently elected vice-president of the European Parliament, and who did not have a party behind him, but received 275,796 votes, could say that Romania voted for him .
But what happened yesterday in the European Parliament? When Valerie Hayer, the president of the Renew political group, asked Ursula von der Leyen to deal with the passage of the right to abortion in the Fundamental Charter of Human Rights in the next mandate of the president of the European Commission, Diana Şoşoacă started screaming, shouting "In God we trust" and to show a diptych (an icon made up of two pieces linked together, so that it can be opened and closed like a book) in the plenary session of the European institution. Soşoacă thought that in Strasbourg, her way of demonstrating her hypocrisy would be accepted, tolerated in the Bucharest Senate, where no quaestor removed her from the plenary hall and where President Nicolae Ciucă did not have the courage to ask for this - you remember the exit uncontrolled of the senator, with anti-Semitic verbal attacks, on May 14, 2024 when the Day of Solidarity and Friendship between Romania and Israel was celebrated in the Parliament?.
Only that Roberta Metsola is a real politician unlike Nicolae Ciucă and the officials of the European Parliament are not the spies in the Parliament from Bucharest. Because Diana Şoşoacă did not calm down, although she was warned by the president of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola ordered her evacuation from the plenary hall. Seeing that Soşoacă opposes the evacuation and continues his hooliganism, Roberta Metsola, in a serious tone, conveyed to the Parliament officials that her order was quite clear and that she wanted it fulfilled. Moreover, he asked Diana Sosoacă to stop yelling at the doormen who were going to evacuate her from the hall. In the end, Soşoacă was evicted from the plenary hall, after she put a muzzle on her face, accused the EU leadership of killing Romanians and waved the black bag she waved on TV and during the Covid 19 pandemic At the time of the accusations, most of the European deputies booed Şoşoacă, which proves that the bribery from Bucharest to Strasbourg is not accepted. Moreover, the said scandal was treated elegantly, with a firm order from the president of the European Parliament and with the white gloves of the ushers who took Diana Şoşoacă out of the hall, denying her access throughout yesterday's meeting.
Regarding the appearance of Şoşoacă, Ursula von der Leyen declared from the European Parliament's rostrum before proceeding to the vote for the renewal of the mandate of the president of the European Commission: "We will always defend freedom. But freedom does not mean having the right to take all freedom. It is not the one who shouts the loudest or has the least respect who has the power, but the rule of law and respect are the values that unite us. We can only build this respect together, beyond the differences and the doctrine of each party. This is how we resolve our differences in our democracies. Not by shouting, not by yelling, not by disrespect, and not by violence, but by voting; not by trying to bridge divisions, but through dialogue".
Yesterday's gesture of Şoşoacă shows that she did not understand anything from the fact that two far-right political groups refused for SOS to be part of these. Although she wanted to be in the European Patriots group led by Jordan Bardella, Marine Le Pen's colleague, Soşoacă was refused by the members of this political group. He then tried to join the group of European Sovereigns, but they also refused to accept SOS in their ranks. Şoşoacă's party is not even in the ECR group - of the European Conservatives, where the AUR MEPs were received, which means that, according to the data on the website of the European Parliament, Diana Ivanovici-Şoşoacă and Luis Lazarus are two MEPs not affiliated with any political group. Why weren't the two accepted in any political group, of the far-right forces or of the sovereignists? Because slums are not welcome in Europe, not even in the ranks of the AfD or in the ranks of the Rassemblement Nationale.
The fact that Sosoacă is not affiliated to any European political group means that she has no power in the European Parliament. According to custom, most legislative changes to acts proposed by the European Commission are made by MEPs following negotiations between political groups. Practically, for 5 years, Soşoacă and Lazarus are isolated in the European Parliament, where they will only register their presence and collect their monthly allowance, benefiting from other facilities granted by the European institution: free transport, parliamentary office with its own employees, settlement different amounts, etc.. After which at the end of the mandate they will be entitled to a special monthly allowance when they retire.
In these conditions, in which she is totally powerless at the European level, we are curious to see what Diana Iovanovici-Soşoacă will choose this fall: the money received from the European Parliament or returning home, to the Senate, after the parliamentary elections on December 1. where she is allowed to display her bribery to the full, without any consequences, and to threaten all kinds of criminal cases - concocted by her lawyerly mind and the too full of ego that Luis Lazarus maintains for her - the public servants who do their duty, whether we are talking about prosecutors, policemen, gendarmes, hospital managers or heads of public institutions or from the local or central public administration.
We are sure that the 450,040 citizens with the right to vote, half of whom are from the Diaspora, will provide him with the necessary 5% to continue to manifest his verbal violence and threats in the Bucharest Parliament. Because, probably, for the voters of Mrs. Soşoacă, real life means shantytowns, hatred, unfounded accusations of others and even the request to remove political opponents from public life.
Euro
Dolar SUA
Franc elveţian
Liră sterlină
Gram de aur
