Debate: Presentation of the programme of activities of the German Presidency
Date: WEDNESDAY, 8 JULY 2020
Speaker: Manfred Weber
Political group: PPE
Country: Austria
Language: EN

And it’s not just Francesco. Many people all over Europe are asking themselves: ‘What happened to solidarity; where is Europe when we need it the most’?  Hohe Erwartungen liegen auf der deutschen Ratspräsidentschaft, liebe Frau Bundeskanzlerin, liebe Angela Merkel. Europa vertraut dir. Wo andere trügerische Stärke suchen, indem sie spalten, führst du zusammen. Was für Adenauer der Staat der europäischen Einheit, was für Kohl der Euro, das ist wahrscheinlich für deine Kanzlerschaft jetzt der Wiederaufbau Europas nach der schweren Corona-Krise. Ja, die deutsche Ratspräsidentschaft darf keine Fußnote der Geschichte werden. Es geht um nicht mehr und nicht weniger als um den Zusammenhalt Europas und die Frage, ob die 20er-Jahre gute Jahre werden oder nicht. Looking back at the last ten years, all people can see are the euro crisis, the migration crisis, the Brexit crisis, and now the corona crisis. We are stumbling from one crisis to another, and why? Because, all too often, we are led by fear and fear is the enemy of solidarity, fear is the enemy of the future and fear is the enemy of our freedom. Look again to Francesco. He was not led by fear. He showed courage, courage that we need in Europe now more than ever before, courage to show solidarity, and the first important step is now the Recovery Fund. We need a solution this month. Courage in the future. We cannot spend the money we borrowed from our children on the past. We need to build the future — climate, digital, industries — simply the most modern continent. Courage to be fair. When you borrow money, you need to say honestly how to pay it back. Does anybody here in this room seriously believe that you can pay the debts of the European Union without digging into own resources? I think not, and that’s why we need a repayment plan before 2028 with, for example, a new digital tax. And courage to be free. Europe is not a cash machine. Europe is a union of shared values. The rule of law must be respected.  And you referred to several other points in today’s introduction of the German Presidency. We have to deliver on concrete solutions on migration, on Brexit, on trade and a lot of other things. But, colleagues, I am afraid that this is simply not enough. Seventy years ago Robert Schuman was confronted with even greater challenges. Europe lay in ruins with millions dead, people displaced, hunger. Nevertheless, Schuman had the courage to look beyond the everyday events. He had faith in Europe.  Today we also have an immense job to do. The digital revolution, a hostile Russia, American in retreat and an assertive China are putting us to the test. The North Pole is melting, Australia is burning, and the liberal democracy, in which we all believe so strongly, is heavily under attack. Yes, the everyday is testing us again, and again the question is whether we, like Schuman, now have the courage to look beyond the everyday. And what is my question when I talk about ‘beyond the everyday’? I think we have to talk about identity. Today we justify Europe on the basis of small everyday success stories — roaming charges, no border controls, the euro, we build motorways, no foreign exchange rates, and so forth. But this perspective is quite an egotistic perspective. If Europe delivers for me, then Europe is good. If Europe does not delivering for me, Europe is bad.  This is not enough anymore. This view of Europe leaves Francesco high and dry in the emergency room once again. No community can survive without community spirit, without shared beliefs, without its own identity, simply — I would mention it in EPP terms — the European way of life, as you described it, Madam Chancellor: democracy, the independence of our courts, the prohibition of the death penalty, the social market economy and, above all, freedom. In the United States they still have the death penalty and no national health insurance, and in China there is no democracy and no freedom at all. Our European way of life is unique and that makes us Europeans. It is good to be a European and I am proud to say that I am a European.  We need to rediscover our courage for the future, the courage to take the next step. Solidarity will only last and our values will only win at the global level if we can create a shared community spirit. Therefore, we need a truly European democracy that people can connect to. That is why we need to think big — like Václav Havel, Helmut Kohl and Lech Wałęsa  to mention only a few.  Chancellor, I trust that the German Presidency and you yourself will be up to the task: to deliver not just on the daily challenges but also, looking beyond, for the next step in European integration, building a living European democracy. Yes to a truly European identity. Yes to the European way of life.