unimelb-nlp/MultiEup-v2 huggingface dataset:
Debate: Cyprus Confidential - need to curb enablers of sanctions-evasion and money-laundering rules in the EU
Date: WEDNESDAY, 22 NOVEMBER 2023
Speaker: Eleni Stavrou
Political group: PPE
Language: EL

Κύριε Πρόεδρε, αγαπητοί συνάδελφοι, μετά λύπης βρίσκομαι σήμερα στο βήμα. Ως Κύπρια πολίτης και ευρωβουλευτής, το πρώτο που έχω να πω είναι: όλα στο φως. Οι αρμόδιες αρχές σε εθνικό και ευρωπαϊκό επίπεδο οφείλουν να διερευνήσουν σε βάθος τις κατηγορίες και να πράξουν αναλόγως. Τα δημοσιεύματα αυτά πάνε πίσω τριάντα χρόνια.  Οφείλω να επισημάνω την τεράστια πρόοδο που σημειώνει η Κύπρος τα τελευταία χρόνια στα θέματα της διαφάνειας, της εποπτείας και του ξεπλύματος, όπως διατυπώνονται από τις δηλώσεις Αμερικανών και Ευρωπαίων αξιωματούχων που εξυμνούν την πρόοδο της Κυπριακής Δημοκρατίας. Παρά τις παραδοσιακές σχέσεις με τη Ρωσία, η Κυπριακή Δημοκρατία στήριξε αμέσως όλες τις κυρώσεις απέναντί της, σε αντίθεση με άλλα πολύ ισχυρότερα κράτη μέλη. Το πράξαμε, αφού εδώ και 49 χρόνια παραμένουμε διαιρεμένοι από την τουρκική εισβολή και κατοχή του βορείου τμήματος της πατρίδας μας, κάτι το οποίο αφήνει την Ευρωπαϊκή Ένωση ανενόχλητη, αφού επιδεικνύει την ίδια ευαισθησία που επιδεικνύει σε άλλες αντίστοιχες περιπτώσεις παραβίασης του διεθνούς δικαίου. Θα θέλαμε να δούμε τις ίδιες κυρώσεις να επιβάλλονται και κατά της Τουρκίας.
Debate: Cyprus Confidential - need to curb enablers of sanctions-evasion and money-laundering rules in the EU
Date: WEDNESDAY, 22 NOVEMBER 2023
Speaker: Georgios Kyrtsos
Political group: Renew
Country: Germany
Language: EL

Κύριε Πρόεδρε, αυτό αποδεικνύει και στην πράξη ότι οι κυρώσεις, με τις ελλείψεις και τις παρακάμψεις τους, δεν στερούν από τον Putin τη δυνατότητα χρηματοδότησης του επιθετικού πολέμου εναντίον της Ουκρανίας. Στην Κύπρο, αν ληφθούν μέτρα για την απομάκρυνση ρωσικών κεφαλαίων, κάτι που προφανώς είναι δίκαιο και αναγκαίο, αυτά δυστυχώς θα πάνε κυρίως στα κατεχόμενα και στην Τουρκία που δεν εφαρμόζει κυρώσεις με την κατανόηση της Ευρωπαϊκής Ένωσης και του ΝΑΤΟ. Ακόμα και η εφαρμογή κυρώσεων οδηγεί σε αμφιλεγόμενες καταστάσεις. Το μεγαλύτερο διυλιστήριο της Ιταλίας, για να φύγει από τον έλεγχο ρωσικής εταιρείας, κατέληξε στον έλεγχο ενεργειακού ομίλου που ελέγχεται από γαλλοισραηλινό δισεκατομμυριούχο, ο οποίος έχει καταδικαστεί για απάτες σε Ρουμανία και Ελβετία. Πήρε το σημαντικότερο διυλιστήριο της Ιταλίας, ενώ η ελληνική και η κυπριακή δικαιοσύνη αρνήθηκαν να εφαρμόσουν ευρωπαϊκό ένταλμα σύλληψης που εξέδωσε σε βάρος του η Ρουμανία. Επενδυτής στην εταιρεία του και συνεργάτης του η ανιψιά του Έλληνα πρωθυπουργού Αλεξία Μπακογιάννη.  Ζητούνται αποτελεσματικότητα, συνέπεια και ήθος.
Debate: Cyprus Confidential - need to curb enablers of sanctions-evasion and money-laundering rules in the EU
Date: WEDNESDAY, 22 NOVEMBER 2023
Speaker: Clare Daly
Political group: The Left
Country: France
Language: EN

Mr President, the reason businessmen using a secrecy jurisdiction to hide and move money has got into the news is, let’s face it, because they’re Russian businessmen. Now, I’m very glad to look at the ways in which the ultra-rich hide and protect their money and the people who help them do it. But I do have a worry, because feverish hatred of all things Russian in Europe, spurred on by geopolitical manoeuvring, has consistently now for years been weaponised to ram through measures in Europe which would otherwise be strenuously resisted by those who call themselves progressive. It’s everywhere from crackdowns on NGO financing to efforts to criminalise sanctions-evasion that’s going to make humanitarian work even more difficult than it is already. So it’s the war on terror all over again. Anything back then was justified if you were combating terrorism; now you can do what you like as long as you’re fighting Russia. So I really plead with colleagues, be outraged by all means, but don’t let it be used as another excuse for policies that will end up being used against civil society, while the oligarchs – Russian, Ukrainian and European – will find ways, and they will find ways, to carry on as before.
Debate: Cyprus Confidential - need to curb enablers of sanctions-evasion and money-laundering rules in the EU
Date: WEDNESDAY, 22 NOVEMBER 2023
Speaker: Dubravka Šuica
Language: EN

Before I start concluding, may I reply to Ms in  I want to mention some of the measures in the July 2021 anti-money laundering package, which will strengthen our arsenal in the fight against money laundering. First, there is the European anti-money laundering authority. In the Commission proposal, the authority will be responsible for supervision and support financial intelligence units. Second, the single EU rulebook will bring more consistency, with detailed rules for the private sector in a directly applicable regulation. In the Commission proposal, we addressed auditors, trust and company services providers and other enablers. These enablers present specific risks, as emphasised by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. The rules in the anti-money laundering regulation would apply also to these operators, not only to banks or financial institutions. Our proposed package is also ambitious on the transparency of beneficial owners. Non-EU legal entities linked with the European Union would have to sign up to the European Union’s beneficial ownership registers. We have already agreed on some groundbreaking parts of the package – that includes the Transfer of Funds Regulation and the Markets in Crypto Asset Regulation. This means that new technological avenues for money laundering and terrorist financing are covered. We do believe our future rules will help make sure that European Union gatekeepers are well supervised and carry out their work well, whether they are inside or outside the financial sector, and regardless of which Member States they operate in. So I repeat my call to Parliament and the Council to conclude negotiations on the anti-money laundering package as soon as possible and with as much ambition as possible. We also have efforts on the taxation side of things. The Council recently adopted the eighth Administrative Cooperation Directive. This sets rules for reporting crypto-asset transactions and allows for the automatic exchange of information between tax authorities. Finally, it is important that the Council addresses the use of shell structures within the European Union. We have a directive pending, which should be concluded quickly and ambitiously.
Debate: Cyprus Confidential - need to curb enablers of sanctions-evasion and money-laundering rules in the EU
Date: WEDNESDAY, 22 NOVEMBER 2023
Speaker: Ángeles Moreno Bau
Language: ES

Como dije en mi intervención inicial, la Presidencia otorga una enorme importancia a las negociaciones en curso en torno a los diversos instrumentos de lucha contra el blanqueo de capitales. Estamos convencidos de que, al final del proceso, la Unión contará con mejores herramientas para hacer frente al blanqueo de capitales y a la financiación del terrorismo.  La lucha contra el blanqueo de capitales supone un esfuerzo constante que exige estar permanentemente adaptándose y proporcionar todas las herramientas a los agentes involucrados. Por consiguiente, la Presidencia permanecerá a disposición del Parlamento para dialogar sobre este asunto según sea necesario.
Debate: Cyprus Confidential - need to curb enablers of sanctions-evasion and money-laundering rules in the EU
Date: WEDNESDAY, 22 NOVEMBER 2023
Speaker: Sophia in 't Veld
Political group: Renew
Country: Poland
Language: EN

Mr President, very briefly, I have the feeling that we’re a bit in the Twilight Zone. There is a massive scandal and the Commission says after a debate like this, ‘Oh, we’re only responsible to see that EU laws are transposed and the Council says everything is fine because we have laws’. Who is responsible? We didn’t get an answer to that in this debate. I find this such a lack of respect, not just to the European Parliament, but to the European citizen. Can we please get an answer from both institutions as to what they’re going to do to make sure that such a scandal cannot happen again, and not because crooks are suddenly good people, but because they will enforce the law.
Debate: years of Copenhagen criteria - giving further impetus to EU enlargement policy
Date: WEDNESDAY, 22 NOVEMBER 2023
Speaker: Dubravka Šuica
Language: EN

Two weeks ago, as all of you know, we adopted a big enlargement package. Then country reports for the first time and the growth plan for the Western Balkans. The Commission recommended that the Council open accession negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova. The Commission recommended the opening of accession negotiations with Bosnia Herzegovina. Once the necessary degree of compliance with the membership criteria is achieved, latest by March of next year. Further, we recommended to grant candidate status to Georgia on the understanding that certain steps are taken.  A functioning market economy and the ability to cope with competitive pressure and market forces within the European Union are equally important as democratic institutions. This is why we are boosting investment and economic growth even before accession. The aim of the growth plan is to boost the economy of the Western Balkans in the next years, in order to close the socio-economic gap between the Union and our partners by the end of this decade. The offer provided by the Growth Plan is therefore a unique opportunity for the Western Balkans to speed up their economic growth and convergence with the European Union, as well as through targeted reforms accelerating the path towards European Union membership. Therefore, the Growth Plan is creating the possibility of early integration of the region into the European Union even before they join our Union. This House has a key role in making it happen. The financial pillar of the growth plan, the EUR 6 billion growth facility, needs to be adopted during the mandate of this Parliament, as we have no time to waste.  Honourable Members, the Copenhagen Criteria have stood the test of time. They capture the essence of what a candidate country needs to do in order to prepare its political, economic and legal system for European membership. But most importantly, they are an expression of the foundation and values on which the European Union is built. The existence of institutions guaranteeing democracy, the rule of law, human rights and respect for, and protection of, minorities, the existence of functioning market economies, and the ability to take on the obligations of membership. We must continue building our joint future based on these criteria.
Debate: years of Copenhagen criteria - giving further impetus to EU enlargement policy
Date: WEDNESDAY, 22 NOVEMBER 2023
Speaker: Michael Gahler
Political group: PPE
Country: Spain
Language: DE

Damals haben sie dafür gesorgt, dass die Kandidatenländer präzise einen Rahmen vorgegeben bekamen, an dem sie sich orientieren konnten. Das ist vielleicht auch der Unterschied zu den Ländern, die bisher in der Östlichen Partnerschaft waren. Die hatten diesen präzisen Rahmen nicht, da war diese Beitrittsperspektive noch nicht drin. Und die Folge war unter anderem, dass eben in Ländern wie der Ukraine, ich sage mal, der Wilde Osten – also in Anspielung auf den Wilden Westen – weiterhin zugange war und auf diese Art und Weise Oligarchen Strukturen aufgebaut haben, eben weil sie dachten, sie könnten weiterhin so agieren, wie sie es bis vor Kurzem auch in der Ukraine veranstaltet haben. Diejenigen, die im mitteleuropäischen Bereich – ja, in der Wendezeit – auch sich das eine oder andere aneignen konnten, haben relativ früh dann mit diesen Kriterien verstanden: Aha, jetzt geht es Richtung Rechtsstaat, jetzt müssen wir uns an den Rahmen halten, der vorgegeben ist, und haben insofern aus meiner Sicht den Rechtsstaat viel früher umarmt und auf die Art dann auch dazu beigetragen, dass wirtschaftlich, aber auch politisch hier ein Rahmen gesetzt wurde in den Beitrittskandidatenländern, der dann kompatibel sein sollte mit der Europäischen Union. Ich bin zuversichtlich: Wenn wir diese Kriterien im politischen und im wirtschaftlichen Bereich auch mit den neuen Beitrittskandidaten – auch im westlichen Balkan – konsequent anwenden und umsetzen, ist das die Voraussetzung dafür, dass wir Mitglieder bekommen werden in der Zukunft, die auf diese Art und Weise auch eine Stärkung der Europäischen Union darstellen, aber auf der anderen Seite auch natürlich für sich selbst eine Stärkung erfahren. Die Mitgliedschaft in der Europäischen Union ist für alle, die inzwischen dazugehören, eine Win-Win-Situation, auch dank der Kopenhagener Kriterien.
Debate: years of Copenhagen criteria - giving further impetus to EU enlargement policy
Date: WEDNESDAY, 22 NOVEMBER 2023
Speaker: Dacian Cioloş
Political group: Renew
Country: France
Language: RO

Acum putem privi cu maturitate o nouă extindere, să gândim viitorul Uniunii într-o dimensiune lărgită, dar și cu un rol și o responsabilitate redefinite în această regiune. Aș spune și cu mai mult curaj. Nu ne putem permite ca interesele înguste ale unor guverne care atacă constant valorile Uniunii să pună la îndoială parcursul european al Moldovei și Ucrainei sau să fie luate ostatice, Moldova și Ucraina, într-o decizie în Consiliu, pentru că un prim-ministru are un interes particular.  Uniunea Europeană mai poate arăta încă o dată că obiectivul principal pentru care a fost făcută pacea și prosperitatea în interiorul granițelor sale poate fi atins, de data aceasta, într-un spațiu mai larg, dar și mai aprofundat și pentru mai mulți cetățeni.
Debate: years of Copenhagen criteria - giving further impetus to EU enlargement policy
Date: WEDNESDAY, 22 NOVEMBER 2023
Speaker: Thomas Waitz
Political group: Verts/ALE
Country: Denmark
Language: DE

Jetzt haben wir einige Schritte gemacht, um dem Beitritt dieser Länder Vorschub zu leisten, um endlich unser Engagement als Europäische Union ernsthaft in die Debatte einzubringen und die Länder zu unterstützen. Ich unterstütze das, und ich freue mich darauf, alle Länder des Westbalkans früher oder später in der Europäischen Union willkommen zu heißen. Wir müssen aber selbst unsere Kriterien – nämlich die Kopenhagener Kriterien – ernst nehmen, wenn wir in Beitrittsgespräche gehen, wenn wir in Beitrittsverhandlungen gehen. Wir müssen ehrlich hinsehen und nicht so tun, als wären da keine Probleme, als wären nicht Gesetze erlassen worden in der Republika Srpska, die es z. B. zivilgesellschaftlichen Organisationen verunmöglichen, ihre Arbeit zu machen, die es Journalisten verunmöglichen, offen ihre Meinung zu sagen. Wir dürfen nicht verheimlichen, dass in Serbien zwar Gesetze erlassen worden sind, aber die Umsetzung dieser Gesetze im Detail dort, wo es für die Menschen spürbar wird, leider oft nicht so stattfindet, wie wir das gerne wollen. Wir müssen anerkennen, dass es in manchen Bereichen noch gravierende Probleme mit der Rechtsstaatlichkeit gibt, obwohl Reformen durchgeführt werden. Montenegro, Albanien sind noch nicht dort, wo wir hinmüssen. Und es hilft uns nicht, wenn wir uns selbst in die Tasche lügen oder die Kommission sich mit uns gemeinsam in die Tasche lügt und sagt „Ja, guter Fortschritt hier, guter Fortschritt da“. Wir müssen dafür Sorge tragen, dass die wesentlichen Kriterien, die wesentlichen Grundwerte – Meinungsfreiheit, Demokratie, Rechtsstaatlichkeit, eben die Kopenhagener Kriterien – ernsthaft und seriös eingehalten werden. Das muss die Basis unserer Beitrittsgespräche sein und bleiben.
Debate: years of Copenhagen criteria - giving further impetus to EU enlargement policy
Date: WEDNESDAY, 22 NOVEMBER 2023
Speaker: Angel Dzhambazki
Political group: ECR
Country: Germany
Language: BG

Такава една държава е, простете за повторението, Северна Македония. Там се отрича правото на национално самоопределение. То е потискано и то е отнемано и отказвано на тези хора, които са с македонско гражданство, но с българско национално самосъзнание. И всички колеги, които работите тук, би трябвало да го знаете. Особено колегите, които са от т.нар. бивша Югославия и колегите от Австрия. Работите по тази тема. Добре знаете, че трябва да се оказва натиск върху правителство в Скопие, за да може да се случи това, което ние всички искаме. Ние всички искаме Република Северна Македония да започне преговори и да се присъедини към Европейския съюз, защото нейното място е в Европейския съюз.  Ние всички знаем, че има про-кремълска и про-белградска пропаганда там и тя трябва да се спре. Но и ваша роля е да оказвате влияние върху това правителство. Вашата задача и роля да оказвате натиск върху това правителство и да позволите българите да се определят като българи, за да започне тази държава да преговаря с Европейския съюз.
Debate: years of Copenhagen criteria - giving further impetus to EU enlargement policy
Date: WEDNESDAY, 22 NOVEMBER 2023
Speaker: Thierry Mariani
Political group: ID
Country: Croatia
Language: FR

L’anniversaire des critères de Copenhague est d’ailleurs particulièrement paradoxal puisque la Commission européenne a émis un avis favorable pour la candidature de l’Ukraine, alors même qu’il est évident que Kiev ne remplit pas ces critères. Toute la crédibilité de la construction européenne est donc abîmée, puisque l’Union européenne érige de grands principes qu’elle s’empresse d’oublier et de balayer en fonction des circonstances. L’intégration des pays des Balkans dans l’Union européenne, c’est toujours plus de mafia dans les campagnes françaises. L’Ukraine dans l’Union européenne, c’est la guerre dans l’Union. Et pour accélérer tout cela, vous voulez en plus que la France accepte d’abandonner ses fonctions régaliennes pour que les votes à la majorité qualifiée soient systématisés au sein du Conseil européen. Il me semble inconcevable qu’un pays membre du Conseil de sécurité de l’ONU devienne tributaire des décisions d’États qui ont délégué leur indépendance à l’OTAN. Avec vos propositions, la France pourrait être entraînée demain dans toutes les folies guerrières des uns et des autres s’il y a une majorité contre elle. Nombreux sont les Français qui ne veulent pas un nouvel élargissement de l’Europe, ils regrettent déjà suffisamment les précédents et ils ont bien raison de craindre les suivants.
Debate: years of Copenhagen criteria - giving further impetus to EU enlargement policy
Date: WEDNESDAY, 22 NOVEMBER 2023
Speaker: Giorgos Georgiou
Political group: The Left
Country: France
Language: EL

Κύριε Πρόεδρε, τον περασμένο Ιούνιο, η κυρία von der Leyen δήλωσε ότι οι Ουκρανοί είναι έτοιμοι να θυσιαστούν για την ευρωπαϊκή προοπτική. Πιο πριν, με το ξέσπασμα του πολέμου, με αυθαίρετο και συναισθηματικό τρόπο τους απέδωσε το καθεστώς της υπό ένταξη χώρας. Διερωτώμαι αν αυτά θεωρούνται κριτήρια για τη διεύρυνση.  Κυρία Αντιπρόεδρε, είπατε ότι πρέπει να τηρούνται κριτήρια. Πρόσφατα, το Ευρωπαϊκό Ελεγκτικό Συνέδριο δήλωσε ότι στην Ουκρανία δεν υπάρχουν επαρκείς δικλίδες ασφαλείας κατά της διαφθοράς, ενώ παράλληλα μίλησε και για συστημικό κίνδυνο από τους ολιγάρχες και τα κατοχυρωμένα συμφέροντα. Πού πάει το κριτήριο του κράτους δικαίου; Το ζήτημα που θίγω δεν αφορά ούτε στην Ουκρανία, ούτε στη Μολδαβία, ούτε σε οποιαδήποτε άλλη υπό ένταξη χώρα. Αν την θέλουν και την δικαιούνται, ας την πάρουν. Μήπως όμως κατεβάζουμε μέσα από την όποια διεύρυνση, πολύ χαμηλά τον πήχη των κριτηρίων, υπηρετώντας άλλες σκοπιμότητες; Προέχουν τελικά οι λαοί και τα συμφέροντά τους, ο εκδημοκρατισμός και η ευημερία τους ή η εξυπηρέτηση γεωπολιτικών σκοπιμοτήτων εκ μέρους ισχυρών κρατών της Ένωσης;
Debate: years of Copenhagen criteria - giving further impetus to EU enlargement policy
Date: WEDNESDAY, 22 NOVEMBER 2023
Speaker: Fabio Massimo Castaldo
Political group: NI
Country: France
Language: EN

Mr President, Commissioner, dear colleagues, 30 years have passed since we set out our criteria for accession. And after an initial impetus that brought us to the current 27 members, we started recording an enlargement fatigue that need to be left apart. The Russian criminal war against Ukraine, as well the other war crimes committed in our neighbourhood, most notably by Azerbaijan in Nagorno-Karabakh, are making enlargement a first-class priority. But empty promises are no longer enough: we must push not only for Western Balkans, Moldova, Georgia and Ukraine, but also for a concrete action plan for the access of Armenia. And the first step will be to grant Yerevan the candidate status as soon as the official request is made. National political leaders must leave apart the short-sighted will to maximise internal consensus by obstructing the enlargement process, they must embrace a truly strategic vision and move further in the accession process for our future members before they will lose hope, starting from the most aligned to our foreign policy. Widening and deepening are two rails of the same track. Our European project will never be completed until all the European countries that share our democratic values are part of the family. Let us move towards this direction now.
Debate: years of Copenhagen criteria - giving further impetus to EU enlargement policy
Date: WEDNESDAY, 22 NOVEMBER 2023
Speaker: Andrius Kubilius
Political group: PPE
Country: France
Language: EN

Mr President, dear colleagues, today we are celebrating 30th anniversary of the EU decision on Copenhagen criteria, which was also a strategic signal that Central Europe and Baltic states are invited to join the European Union. What is the difference in between of then and now? At that time we in the Central Europe and Baltics were quite chaotic, not very stable, post-totalitarian democracies. EU was prudent and brave enough in Copenhagen to offer us a perspective to join EU, and in that way it stabilised us and modernised us. EU enlargement is the most effective instrument to transform EU neighbourhood into stable and successful democracies. At that time our economies were less than 30% of EU average. Now we are reaching EU level and we are overcoming some economies of the old Europe. At that time, EU was unfortunately not brave enough to offer the same perspective for Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia, and that is the reason why those countries were left behind in their development and lost almost all those 30 years. After the first wave of enlargement into Central Europe, EU declared that it ‘lost appetite’ for further enlargement, including into Western Balkans and Ukraine, and that was the biggest geopolitical mistake of EU, because that led to Russia’s war against Ukraine. Now it’s time for EU to come back to the geopolitical prudence and bravery like it was done in Copenhagen. From now on, negotiations with accession countries should continue for three or four years, like it was in our case, and let us be ready in 2030 to celebrate new members of EU – Western Balkans, Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia.
Debate: years of Copenhagen criteria - giving further impetus to EU enlargement policy
Date: WEDNESDAY, 22 NOVEMBER 2023
Speaker: Pedro Silva Pereira
Political group: S-D
Country: Bulgaria
Language: PT

Senhor Presidente, há poucos anos atrás muitos julgavam que o Brexit iria provocar um terrível efeito dominó, capaz de pôr em causa a própria existência da União Europeia. A realidade hoje é muito diferente. Nenhum Estado-Membro dá sinais de querer sair e, pelo contrário, temos hoje dez países a querer entrar, nove dos quais já com estatuto de candidato. São cada vez mais os que percebem que pertencer à União Europeia é uma mais-valia. Como correlator deste Parlamento para o alargamento e o aprofundamento da União, devo recordar que os critérios de Copenhaga são requisitos de adesão e que não pode haver transigência no respeito pelos valores europeus e pelos princípios do Estado de direito. Por isso, cada candidatura será avaliada pelo seu mérito à luz das reformas concretas efetuadas. Mas se os países candidatos têm de fazer reformas, também a União Europeia tem que se reformar no plano institucional e financeiro para estar em condições de absorver novos Estados-Membros. Não adianta iludir os problemas, é preciso fazer o trabalho de casa para que o alargamento possa ser um sucesso.