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The Belgian MEP criticized Eurosceptic leaders throughout the Brussels bloc and lashed out at the institutions of the European Union that do not act against those who threaten the prosperity of the Union. Verhofstadt urged European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to repeat her 75-minute State of the Union address at the European Council, as she claimed that all issues raised by the Commission leader are systematically ignored by some EU leaders.
He said: “My proposal is that you repeat these 75 minutes of your speech, which I really liked, also in the Council.
“Because let’s be honest, half of the issues you raised are locked in the Council.
“When we talk about migration, the tragedy in the Moria camp is a consequence of the impossibility of reforming Dublin, of reforming immigration policy.
“When we talk about Belarus, 40 days have passed since Lucachjemnclp stole this election and we are not able to put sanctions on the table.
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“When we talk about drilling by Turkey in the eastern Mediterranean in Greek waters, there are no sanctions, there are no actions at all.
“When we talk about Hong Kong, the words do. But sanctions? No. Actions? No.
“And when we talk about the rule of law within the European Union, let’s be honest, for five, six years we talked about it here in Europe and in the European Parliament.
“There are no sanctions against these authoritarian regimes. Therefore, I beg you to repeat this as quickly as possible in the Council and let us make a pact, a deal between ourselves, that that is the priority for 2021.”
The European Union executive director on Wednesday painted a sober picture of the bloc battling a pandemic and the deepest recession in its history, but set ambitious targets to make all 27 nations more resilient to future crises.
In her annual State of the Union address, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen redoubled the iconic goals she set for herself when she took office last December: action to protect the climate and a digital revolution.
She unveiled a plan to cut the EU’s greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55 percent from 1990 levels by 2030, above the existing target of 40%, and called for increased investment in technology to Europe to compete more intensely with China and the United States.
The officials said that, far from reversing the plans he presented at the beginning of his term due to the coronavirus crisis, von der Leyen believes they will be key to Europe’s economic and political survival.
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The EU has been hit for years by crises, from the 2008 financial collapse to disputes over migration and the long saga of Britain’s exit from the bloc.
Solidarity among the 27 member states seriously deteriorated at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, when countries refused to share protective medical kits with those most affected and closed borders without consulting to prevent the spread of the virus.
Bloc leaders also fought for months over a joint plan to rescue their economies strangled by the coronavirus.
But in July they agreed on a stimulus plan that paved the way for the European Commission to raise billions of euros in capital markets on behalf of all of them, an act of solidarity unprecedented in almost seven decades of European integration.
Von der Leyen told the European Parliament in his speech that “this is the time for Europe” to trust others and stand together.
“It is time for Europe to lead the way from this fragility to a new vitality,” he said.
“I say this because in recent months we have rediscovered the value of what we have in common … We turn fear and division between Member States into trust in our Union.”
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