Debate: EU-Egypt strategic and comprehensive partnership and agreements with key third countries
Date: TUESDAY, 23 APRIL 2024
Speaker: Margaritis Schinas
Language: EN

First, on the content of the agreement itself. Let me repeat that we value this partnership as a partnership that is based on the values of mutual respect, equity and mutual strategic interest between the European Union and the country with whom we have historic relations and which has been proving a stable partner in a very unstable region at a very unstable moment. I have the fullest respect for the opinion of this House. I have myself served as a Member of the European Parliament. I understand your points but, frankly, I wouldn’t describe that five democratically elected prime ministers from three political families can be simply presented as Ursula and her friends. With all due respect, we are the European Union. We have elected leaders, and elected leaders have a stake in democracy as anybody else.  Let me also assure you that the role of the European Parliament will be fully respected. The political support of this House for our common action is indispensable in the different aspects of this agreement. I want to assure Parliament that this House will be involved in all the important stages of the implementation of the macro-financial assistance. I want to stress that we will use the procedure of the regular macro-financial assistance, during which you will be consulted to keep you updated on the latest development and on the short-term MFA operation. And obviously, the Commission will remain at your disposal to debrief and inform this House and its committees at the different stages of the implementation of all aspects of the programme, both as regards preparation and implementation.  Dear President, honourable Members, thirdly, this is the last address to this plenary for me in the current political cycle and I would like to take this opportunity to wholeheartedly thank this House for the support that I have received for the past five years. Together, we have achieved truly historic breakthroughs and successes. We have successfully navigated the pandemic. We modernised our pharma legislation. We invested in our health resilience and built a new ecosystem to fight cancer. We increased the Erasmus funds, three times. We grew a European alliance of universities and we set the stage for a common European degree. We invested in people and helped train 3.5 million workers. We made our Union more secure both online and offline, significantly reinforcing our cybersecurity legislation and critical infrastructure threats. We are overhauling the way the European Union manages migration with a new pact that you have voted massively last week, epitomising a firm but fair Union firmly rooted in our values. And we have shown unwavering support and commitment to Ukraine and its people, opening our doors and our hearts, and showing a simple fact: that the European way of life is not just something to be envied, but it’s also something to be shared.  Honourable Members, these are all your successes. They are Europe’s successes. And I personally feel uniquely honoured to be able to share all these successes with you. Because whatever happens, whatever any of us do next, we will have done all this together. And of this, I’m really proud.