Speeches

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, I would not like this debate to stem from the obsession that some members of the Italian Democratic Party have with my party, the League, and its leader Matteo Salvini. Not words, but irrefutable facts. According to VoteWatch, in an analysis of the votes in the European Parliament, it turns out that it was the Democratic Party and the Five Star Movement that had among the Italians the most pro-Russian positions. While, again according to this research, as a Lega delegation we voted in 83 percent of cases for positions of condemnation against Russia. Facts, these are facts and not words. Then, I would like to summarily remind this House that it was precisely the current secretary of the Democratic Party, Enrico Letta, then President of the Council, who signed all the most important energy agreements between Italy and Russia, effectively tying our country to Moscow for the supply of gas. Personally, I was with a delegation from this House in Washington, at the White House, on 24 February, when Russian troops attacked Ukraine. The world changed from that cursed day and both in Italy and in Europe the League voted everyone, I say all the measures and supported the Ukrainian people in favor of unity even of the West. You want to accuse us of something? It seems to me that your accusations serve to want to forget, to forget that you are the heirs of that Italian Communist Party that exalted the Kremlin, and when Stalin was in the Kremlin. And even today some of you show up in the squares with the Soviet red star. Because you do not want to talk to us about the real problems that are there today, about bills, inflation and expensive gasoline, about how to lower taxes. Here, dear colleagues, dear friends of the PD, get out of your head this obsession for Salvini and for the League and say something left, finally, your voters will be grateful.

(IT) Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, the actions and preparations for the Russian cyber-attacks began a year before the invasion of Ukraine, confirming that the conflict had been planned well in advance. It is now clear that there is a synergistic activity of Russian cyber warfare activities, intended to destabilize some sensitive and strategic infrastructure of a territory that Russia intended to strike. An expansion to the West, outside the Ukrainian borders of cyber attacks is one of the possible scenarios of the development of the conflict and knowing that these actions have been prepared again by Moscow well in advance, it is evidently necessary not to be unprepared. It is not necessary to wait for further tensions with Russia to prepare a plan for the response and containment of these attacks. Instead, it is necessary to immediately identify a strategy to maximize our defenses. We must also have a vision of perspective, a vision that fights the cyber war, which will not end with the end of the conflict in Ukraine, on the contrary it will probably be exacerbated. Greater cooperation is needed not only between the European states of the whole West, obviously, but also a strengthening of what is cooperation with historic allies, the United States, but also the United Kingdom and international organizations such as NATO. Only with the unity of the West will we be able to face these hybrid threats and defend ourselves in this way and above all defend our sensitive and strategic infrastructure, since when we talk about cybersecurity It's not just about cyber security in the strict sense, it's about real national security.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, I am speaking very clearly, but listen to me. As a League we reaffirm our positioning that stands firmly in the West with the Atlantic axis and in support of the Italian Draghi government. We condemn without if and without but the brutal Russian aggression and we support the battered Ukrainian people, hoping for a speedy peace agreement. I personally went to Taiwan challenging the Chinese communist regime, I went to Washington to strengthen transatlantic relations and I am extremely convinced that only with the unity of the West and the NATO front will we Europeans be able to respond adequately to the new global threats arising from the Russian aggression in Ukraine. Anyone who wants to question our strategic positioning for mere domestic policy purposes does harm not to the League, but to the unity that is required at this difficult time. News rumors that want to damage the League continue to relaunch fake news, to which we responded by legal means, also asking for a refund to be donated to the Ukrainian people. False and instrumental speculations, now overcome by facts and history, cannot and should not be used for mere political speculation. We do not accept lessons from those who, like the Italian Democratic Party, are allies of the pro-Russia lobbyist Schröder, or from the Five Star Movement, a friend of Beijing and Caracas. Instead of continuing with instrumental attacks, especially in this difficult time, I invite all colleagues to collaborate more, without fueling divisions in Italian and European politics.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, since the creation of the INGE Committee, I immediately wanted to work with my colleagues to work together and try to understand how the European Union can deal with interference and disinformation from third countries. I was proudly, as a League, one of the members of the European Parliament's first historic mission to Taiwan, challenging the Chinese Communist regime. I was proudly part of the mission in Washington, where we also spoke with senior White House officials to strengthen transatlantic relations. From the first meeting, I wanted to underline how countering hybrid interference and threats requires greater cooperation with overseas allies, how NATO also needs to play a coordinating role and how we Europeans can and must do more, particularly at this time. The enemies of our democracies and freedoms, of our way of life, are now invading Ukraine. The enemies are those who are bombing Kiev and Ukrainian civilians and who, like China, are challenging the West with threats to Taiwan and civil liberties in Hong Kong. We must never forget that. In the INGE Committee, and this can be confirmed from the first to the last of my colleagues, I have always wanted to seek unity and collaboration, in the face of these challenges there should be no political distinctions. Just in Washington last week we received an invitation to depoliticize the debate and try not to make electoral propaganda on these issues. Unfortunately, ladies and gentlemen, not everyone has accepted this. In the report there are those who wanted to make statements, now denied by facts and history, to question our membership of the Atlantic Axis, but we cannot accept these falsehoods, which unfortunately have been included in a report to attack our party. So, let us remember, for the good of all and to avoid misunderstandings and further exploitation, that the Russian Federation, Putin, has attacked Ukraine, a democracy in the heart of Europe, a country that is part of the great European family. We in the League stand with the West, which condemns this aggression together. Our secretary Matteo Salvini is in these hours on the border between Poland and Ukraine to bring solidarity to that people, our mayors - the mayors of the League - first in Italy, have expressed their solidarity and welcome to refugees and the Italian regions led by our governor, by the governor of my region Massimiliano Fedriga, are on the front line to give hospitality and provide medicines. We are proud of our democracies, we are proud to belong to the West and our institutions and we reiterate this forcefully here: We are proud to belong to NATO. We strongly condemn Russian, Chinese and Iranian interference and interference in the democratic processes of the European Union and recognize how certain actions from Moscow have sadly prepared the war we are living through these days. I would have liked some of my fellow Members to have put aside the electoral propaganda and not have speculated on these events for a cowardly and mere political attack. There would certainly have been unity. Perhaps this Parliament has once again missed an extraordinary opportunity. And allow me, in conclusion, President, to thank, on this important day, all the women, all the women who with great dignity, often among a thousand obstacles, prove to be better than us.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, Madam Commissioner, this report unfortunately contains an indiscriminate attack on the wine sector, which has hit an entire production sector. We are the Europe of the regions, of the local excellences and of the peculiarities, which, however, cannot all be put in the same cauldron. A responsible consumption of wine, of quality wine like the Italian one, cannot be considered equal to the abuse of spirits and cannot be absolutely put on the same footing as smoking or tobacco. Marking with a letter "F" of black color our national wine excellences, our local products, to then favor the large distribution, goes to harm the work of thousands of companies and family businesses that, I want to remember, with passion and love for their land cultivate the vines and produce our wines known all over the world. I would invite those who make this crazy proposal to responsibly drink a good glass of Friulian wine, a good yellow Ribolla, a Prosecco DOC, all excellent wines of my land, and then visit our companies, made up of proud entrepreneurs who, do not doubt, will also teach you education, moderation and responsibility to avoid harmful alcohol risk consumption. This is obviously the way forward, not useless, misleading and, yes, harmful labels such as Nutriscore.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, I really take this opportunity to congratulate you on your re-election and to wish you the Presidency and Vice-Presidency of this House. As far as Hong Kong is concerned, I really hope that this House will be united in condemning the violence of the Chinese Communist Party. Europe cannot helplessly witness the continuous abuses of Beijing, both in the repression of civil rights, but above all in the violence that is constantly being carried out. As a League we have a very clear position on this and our leader Matteo Salvini has also repeatedly recalled the importance of defending freedom in Hong Kong, even by demonstrating in person in front of the Chinese embassy. Now we have to forget what happened? No, we must be even more forceful in this House and we must counter the activities of the Chinese Communist Party, which is also undermining the stability of the Indo-Pacific with continuous military threats to Taiwan and is also persecuting the Xinjiang Uyghurs, among other things, and continues to interfere in the democratic processes of the Union. The lack of cooperation with the West has also manifested itself in the situation of the Covid virus, where obviously we have not had any kind of information, and relations between China and Europe have worsened with this situation. We cannot and must not be silent about this either. For these reasons we must act more and more forcefully and absolutely without fear: Europe stands with Hong Kong.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, Commissioner, the environmental issue is not and should not be the sole responsibility of the left, on the contrary. Environmental protection can also be within this absolutely unequivocal parliamentary arc and really give us great opportunities. In Glasgow there has been talk of climate change, but finally reason and realism have prevailed over ideologies. The ecological transition, as the term itself suggests, must be a path, not a mere goal to be achieved at the expense of growth and development. My appeal is an appeal for responsibility. Let us abandon the venerations of Greta Thunberg and try to find an agreement for European positions and for responsible environmentalism, which combines environmental protection with the right of companies to continue to exist, avoiding new constraints that would evidently cause their closure. Especially at this time of great difficulty, we must not allow thousands of jobs to be lost, privileging ideologies to the detriment of businesses and even families, and favoring, for example, that Chinese economy that does not pose, at least concretely, the environmental problem. Let us remember, finally, that you can still die of hunger, before you die of pollution.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, Bosnia means a difficult and complicated country with a history of great suffering. Bosnia also means Bihać, that canton in the north of the country where there are thousands of migrants who live in inhuman conditions. You know what it is The Game? The Game This is the route that human traffickers point out to migrants in order to arrive in Europe, in particular to arrive in Friuli Venezia Giulia, the region that I have the honour to represent in this Parliament. Can we stand by and wait until, after the Mediterranean front, after the blackmail of Erdoğan and Lukashenko, the migration crisis on the Balkan route surprises us again? I raise the alarm in front of all of you today. Commissioner, representatives of the Council, dear colleagues, the situation risks exploding and another migration front could destabilise Europe. Let's not let that happen! Defence of the European Union's external borders, more resources for the border police, the establishment of collection centres where it is possible to check who actually has the right to asylum, but above all, and as President von der Leyen said even today, strict repatriation rules for all those who do not have the necessary requisites. We do not transform Friuli Venezia Giulia and the north-east of Italy into the refugee camp of Europe.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, the Council has defined the Union's position with a view to COP26 in Glasgow in the coming days, emphasising the intensification of the global response to the climate emergency and therefore the need for a just and above all fair transition. Precisely for this reason, when decisions are taken that immediately and directly affect all citizens, we must not forget the peculiarities of our territories and of the individual states within the Union. As shadow rapporteur for this report in the ITRE Committee, I have worked hard to ensure that these differences could be highlighted and taken into account, so that the ecological transition does not represent a net loss for our companies, especially for small and medium-sized companies, which – I would like to recall – are a heritage not only of Italy but of the whole of Europe. We obviously have to preserve the uniqueness of our territories and there is no urgency that can change our priority.

Mr President, Commissioner Vestager, ladies and gentlemen, winds of war are blowing over the Chinese seas. China has raised the bar, unfortunately not just metaphorically, and is now aiming straight at Taiwan. While we in Europe get lost in a lot of chatter, the United States, which I remember being our main ally, thinks very concretely and above all acts to defend the supremacy, them and the whole West, for the containment of China in the Indo-Pacific. We all, together with our transatlantic partners, must have a common goal: prevent China from becoming an ocean power through the conquest of Taiwan. Those who control the seas control the world, this is often said. This is why the role in the island is strategic and fundamental to prevent an undemocratic country and above all managed by the largest communist party in the world from prevailing in the geopolitical and economic field. So, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, this time we cannot look the other way. This time Europe must shout loudly: We are on Taiwan's side.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, allow me to thank on this occasion someone whose work is too often taken for granted: I am referring in particular to the volunteers of the Italian Civil Protection, who also in this summer of fires and natural disasters have made themselves available and, in a spirit of service, have served the country even at the risk of their own lives. In particular, however, I would like to mention the glorious Civil Protection of Friuli Venezia Giulia, the region from which I come, which in August instead of going on holiday quietly decided with courage to leave and support the other volunteers who were extinguishing the fires in Sicily, Sardinia and other regions of Italy. Volunteers who, previously, did not hesitate for a moment to pick up the call of the Union Civil Protection Mechanism to go and help our Croatian neighbours following the earthquakes that devastated their territories. Without forgetting, in the darkest moment of the pandemic, the organization to distribute the first masks to the population to protect themselves from viruses. Here, to all of them, to all the volunteers, I would like to say thank you, you are the honor of Italy and Europe.

Madam President, High Representative, ladies and gentlemen, interference and disinformation from third countries have long been analysed by the INGE Committee. It is undeniable that there are some countries that, using new technologies, try to destabilize some nation states or even the European institutions themselves. That is why it is necessary to work together – or better to work together – in this House to give Europe the tools it needs to counter these actions, instead of coming here to take lessons from those who have their origins in the Italian Communist Party, which for over fifty years has been financed by Moscow, and this is documented. The League's position is very clear: We are on the side of Western democracies with no ifs and buts. We have no fear of criticizing those who violate these principles, be it in Moscow or Beijing. Precisely on Beijing, you, Mr High Representative, told us in committee that the European External Action Service does not have the tools to counter attacks from China. Well, now tell us in this House what you need and how we MEPs can meet you. Certainly we cannot remain defenseless against attacks on our democracies coming in particular from a state run by the largest communist party that massacres Uyghurs, persecutes Christians and militarily threatens Taiwan and tramples civil liberties in Hong Kong. To counteract external interference, however, the European Union cannot do it alone. It is necessary to strengthen more and more the synergy with other actors, I am referring to NATO and the main ally of our continent, the United States of America. We do not make the mistake of not involving our overseas allies in this battle, a battle that must also turn to online platforms for collaboration but never censorship. Too often we see social media blocking or censoring not only extremists, but also those who, as journalists or politicians, express ideas that do not conform to political correctness, undermining the fundamental principle of freedom of expression. Yes then to the fight against disinformation, no to censorship, this must be extremely clear.