Debate contributions by Reinhold LOPATKA

Madam President, dear colleagues, accounts of foreign espionage are unfortunately nothing new, but espionage contacted by a Member State of the European Union, targeting its own institutions to which it belongs – this is alarming. It strikes at the foundation of trust and cooperation that must underpin relations among Member States and within our institutions. These revelations come at a time when EU-Hungary relations are already fragile – we know it, strained by concerns about backlashes and backsliding of the rule of law and the Hungarian leadership proximity to Russia. If the allegations are verified, this would represent yet another significant breach of trust by a Member State towards the European Union, and the European project rests entirely on trust and shared democratic values. No government within our Union can be permitted to turn European institutions into instruments of domestic or foreign agendas, which is obviously done by Hungary. We must, therefore, act firmly to safeguard our democracy, defending it not only from external threats but also from those that arise within the European Union. And this question is a question: what was the role of Commissioner Várhelyi when he served here as ambassador of Hungary? This is an open question.

Madam President, five years ago, the people of Belarus stood up with extraordinary courage against the stolen election. They demanded democracy and were met with brutality. Since then, Lukashenka and his regime have systematically destroyed the foundation of democracy, imprisoning more than 1 400 political activists, silencing independent media and turning repression into a tool of state control. Let us be clear: this regime is not only repressing its own citizens. It is an active accomplice of Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine. And the recent release of Siarhei Tsikhanouski, after five years of unjust imprisonment, of course, is a rare moment of hope. It is proof that international pressure and European solidarity work are necessary. We have to continue with these efforts.

Madam President, dear colleagues, the European Council this week must demonstrate unity. For me, this is the most important thing. Europe cannot afford indecision; we need determined action. First, Ukraine: our support must continue politically, financially and also through reconstruction. Europe must stay united here to help Ukraine, and we have to do everything to secure a just and lasting peace. And that can only be achieved, as I see it, on Ukraine's terms. Second, security and resilience: Europe must better protect its citizens by safeguarding critical infrastructure and countering hybrid threats. Third, the Middle East: The European Union must play a role here. We have to play a role in diplomatic, political and economics. We have to work here and to continue to work on a two-state solution. Finally, migration: Austria supports a balanced implementation of the new pact on migration and asylum, with strong borders, effective returns and deepening partnerships with countries of origin and transit. So this European Council must send a clear message: Europe delivers with unity.

Madam President, colleagues, it is in the hands of President Vučić to take Serbia towards Europe. Their neighbour Montenegro is showing the path, or – like Georgia – take the opposite direction. Serbia's European future remains open, of course, but it depends on respect for our common values. That means an independent judiciary, free media and political pluralism. It is crucial to have much closer alignment with the European Union in foreign and security policy, including towards Russia. We want Serbia to succeed, of course, but that requires determined reforms, rejection of nationalist narratives from political leaders as well as all sections of civil society, and we have also seen it through the demonstrators. Serbia has made progress, of course, in certain areas, including economic growth, regional infrastructure, connectivity and cooperation with the EU on migration management and energy security. But there are many other fields where there is no progress, not at all. Our long-standing commitment to Serbia's European perspective is essential, and it always depends on full respect for the rule of law and fundamental rights. Serbia needs a democratic dialogue, de‑escalation and inclusive political participation. It is Serbia's decision whether it comes back to the European track.

Madam President, dear colleagues, at this moment, there is a chance for peace in the Middle East, but not more. Thanks to President Trump, there is significant momentum, with a ceasefire and hostage-exchange deal, as well as commitments to humanitarian access and reconstruction in Gaza. At the same time, the situation remains extremely fragile. Violations of the truce have already occurred, and the core issues – the full disarmament of Hamas, the long-term governance of Gaza and a credible two-state solution – are still unresolved. The EU has to remain firm – most urgently, for the full disarmament of the terrorist organisation Hamas and the end of their rule over Gaza. We must also continue working towards a two-state solution, which is necessary for a viable Palestinian state alongside a secure Israel. In all areas, we must work with the Arab world. A long-lasting solution is only possible with their support. The Abraham Accords show the way.

Madam President, dear colleagues, on 11 September, not one month ago, in the Haitian town of Cabaret, the gang coalition Viv Ansanm perpetrated a brutal massacre of over 40 innocent people, among them children, elderly people and entire families. This is not an isolated event – in the last three years, 16 000 people lost their lives, and more than 1.3 million people are displaced. Half of Haiti's population faces acute food insecurity. Hospitals, schools and courts have collapsed under gang domination. Sexual violence has become systematic. What we are witnessing is the erosion of law and humanity itself. Haiti's suffering is a humanitarian catastrophe and a moral test for the whole international community. Europe cannot remain a spectator. We must act with determination, grounded in our values and guided by responsibility. Firstly, we must restore justice and accountability. Gangs act because impunity reigns. The European Union should help rebuild Haiti's judicial capacity, training judges, investigators and prosecutors. And we have to support the investigation of these massacres and corruption. Without justice, there will be no stability. Secondly, we must intensify humanitarian aid. The UN Humanitarian Response Plan remains gravely underfunded. Europe should step up: food assistance, healthcare and protection of those most in need; ensuring transparency, monitoring and secure access for humanitarian workers. Thirdly, we must help re-establish security and the rule of law. The UN‑mandated Gang Suppression Force, approved by the Security Council, must be staffed properly, equipped and financed. The European Union should support this effort politically and technically. And so, coming to a conclusion, I think this massacre in Cabaret must serve as a turning point. By adopting this resolution, our Parliament sends a united and clear message: Europe stands with the people of Haiti, works against terror and works for security, justice and restoration of human dignity.

Madam President, Iran has crossed every red line by enriching uranium to 90 % weapons‑grade levels and advancing its ballistic missile programme in blatant defiance of UN Security Council Resolution 2231. Iran is not sending any signals that it is for de-escalation. It is doing the opposite. It is escalating a grave threat. Here it is absolutely the right way – the full reimposition of UN sanctions. And I think the European Union must go further. Now the EU must demonstrate unity, and I am absolutely sure it is not a matter of non‑proliferation. No, it is a test of Europe's strategic credibility and our commitment to the rules‑based international order.

Madam President, dear colleagues, Latin America is a key partner in many areas like trade, natural resources, the fight against organised crime or tackling climate change. We also share a large common culture, history, religion, values and strong people-to-people ties, like in Spain or Portugal, and Mercosur countries are already our biggest export market – even bigger than the USA and China. Yet Europe's attention has been drifting elsewhere, leaving strategic space for China or Russia. We face an increasingly contested international environment, and if the European Union wants to continue shaping the rules-based global order, we must act proactively. So I hope the upcoming EU-CELAC Summit in November 2025 will be a key opportunity to launch a new roadmap.

Madam President, dear colleagues, India is one of the world's fastest‑growing major economies, with GDP growth of more than 7 % in the first half of this year. Their demographic strength, rising technological capabilities and also their big economy show how important this country is. For the EU, a new strategic agenda with India can offer opportunities in trade and investment. As India's global influence rises, so do its responsibilities toward stability, peace and respect for a rules‑based world order. And here India must show that India is going the way we did already. They have to diversify their energy supplies away from Russia. Europe has undertaken this painful but necessary shift, and I think we have to discuss it with India, so that they also reduce their dependence on Russia. India and the EU are natural partners, as I see it. They are democracies with shared interests and a global reach.

Mr President, dear colleagues, we must keep at the forefront of our minds the immense suffering of the people in Afghanistan. The devastating earthquake has compounded an already dire humanitarian situation and, of course, the Taliban's restrictions have severely hampered aid delivery, with bans on women working, internet blackouts, as was mentioned before, and obstructive administrative burdens. At the same time, we must not lose sight of the broader context. The regime that now controls Afghanistan continues to violate human rights and deny women their fundamental freedoms. In the face of this, our response must remain value based. In the dark hours, Europe can show, on the one hand, that it stands with the people of Afghanistan, but, on the other hand, in the same way, we have to criticise this horrific regime in Afghanistan.

Madam President, Mr Prime Minister, ladies and gentlemen! Smaller and medium-sized countries in Europe can do far more than their size. Luxembourg is a prime example of this. Economically very strong, above-average European commitment – this is what Luxembourg has been doing for decades. In the midst of the turn of the century, we must now do everything we can to strengthen Europe as an economic and industrial location in order to strengthen our internal market. Only in this way will we be able to cope financially with the growing tasks – whether it is about defence spending, whether it is about being able to finance our social model in Europe with an ageing population. Luxembourg is a founding country of the European Union. Since then, there have been several expansion steps. The last one, however, is a long time ago: 2013. We should take the next step here in the Western Balkans. We need a Europe that is growing, not only in terms of Member States, but also in terms of strength and cohesion. And not a return to the nation-states, as has been falsely demanded here again by patriots and nationalists.

Mr President, the case of Victoire Ingabire is a prime example of the ongoing challenges to freedom of expression and political participation in Rwanda. As a member of the Delegation to the Africa-EU Parliamentary Assembly, I am aware of how important it is to strengthen democratic principles and human rights in Africa. The EU has a responsibility to share its values and standards by supporting not only development but also human rights and democratic principles in civil society across Africa. We do it next week, observing the elections in Malawi. And we cannot accept that political opposition in Rwanda is systematically persecuted. The repeated imprisonment of Madam Ingabire, despite clear rulings by the African Court, is an alarming signal. The government of Rwanda must end political persecution and guarantee the safety of all political actors. Victoire Ingabire deserves and needs our support.

Mr President, dear colleagues, the horrible terrorist attacks in Colombia must be condemned in the strongest possible terms. These acts of violence not only claim innocent lives, but also represent an attack on our shared values, and here we have to support the government of Colombia in its fight against terrorism. As Vice-Chair of the Eurolat Committee on Political Affairs, Security and Human Rights, I always stress in our exchanges with politicians from Latin America that, on the one hand, democratic principles and, on the other hand, our fight against extremism and against terrorism must be in the centre of our political dialogue and our work we are doing together. So, Colombia is a key partner for the European Union, and we have to do more than only to work on a trade agreement, which we renewed in 2024. Colombia is a strategic partner for development, prosperity and also in the fight against crime and organised terrorism.

Madam President, dear colleagues, the recent events in Serbia remind us that European integration is much more than technical negotiations. Respect of our common values and fundamental human rights is crucial. The ongoing protests started peaceful, but the reaction at the same time was the wrong one. We have received many reports of disproportionate use of force by security services, and we must stress that Serbia's authorities have to ensure that fundamental rights are fully respected. A candidate country aspiring to join the European Union should show that it upholds our key principles. Yes, Serbia is an essential partner in the Western Balkans, and I still see the future of Serbia ultimately in the European Union. But the road to membership must be based on common democratic standards, and hopefully Serbia will come back to its path towards EU membership. Now it's not on this path.

Mr President, dear colleagues, as Chair of the European Parliament's Delegation for Relations with the Arab Peninsula, I feel compelled to address the ongoing detention of Ryan Cornelius in the United Arab Emirates. I work for strengthening our relationship, but we have to be honest with our friends in the United Arab Emirates. Mr Cornelius was convicted in 2008. He served 10 years – a 10‑year sentence. However, in 2018, his detention was extended by an additional 20 years unless a substantial sum – over USD 400 million – is repaid. The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention reviewed the case in 2022 and found that his imprisonment violates international human rights law. It concluded that Mr Cornelius has been arbitrarily detained and called for his immediate release. We recognise the importance of strong and constructive relations between the UAE and the European Union, and fully respect the independence of judicial systems. But our partnership must also be grounded in core principles, and these are the rule of law and human dignity. I therefore urge the UAE authorities to seriously re-examine Mr Cornelius's case. We have to continue with the already well‑established human rights dialogue between the UAE and the European Union.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen. As far as my previous speaker friend, I would not go to call the patriots a criminal organization. But it is a well-known pattern – that is true. Right-wing populists are rattling against the European Union and, at the same time, using it illegally to an extent that is incomprehensible – that must be said. Le Pen has already been convicted with a dozen of her fellow MPs. It was a matter of millions of dollars – that's no small matter. And today there was another house search in Paris. The European Public Prosecutor's Office is now investigating the further abuse of 4.3 million euros. Involved: Right-wing extremist parties in France, Germany, Belgium, but also in Austria, which hits us very much. The investigation only found in Austria: 599 650 euros. 599 650 euros went to the FPÖ-related magazine Zur Zeit, published by a former member of the Liberal Party, here in the European Parliament. And who then defends all this as super clean? Harald Vilimsky, head of the FPÖ delegation, against whom several criminal proceedings are pending. What it needs now is, in fact, full enlightenment. And if something is illegal, then you also pay it back in the same way that you had to pay back a very high amount of money at that time – 400,000 euros for champagne celebrations.

Madam President, dear colleagues, the European Council conclusions send a clear and resolute message. The European Union remains steadfast in its commitment, firstly, to enlargement. We had the last one in 2013. The time has come for the next enlargement. Secondly, a clear message that we defend Ukraine's sovereignty, and it is a good signal. Also, the United States now said that they will continue in their support for the freedom of the people in Ukraine. And thirdly, the strengthening of our collective security. Austria was always in favour of enlargement, and we strongly support the credible merit-based enlargement process. This is essential for the future of the European Union. Enlargement was always a success story. We should continue with it. We need concrete results after years of negotiations, especially with Western Balkan countries, and we have to do everything so that we are not losing credibility. Therefore, we have to say very clear that we are absolutely in favour of an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and guaranteed unhindered humanitarian access. This is necessary for us to keep our credibility.

Madam President, dear colleagues, I want to mention at the beginning that I think we have to see the reality. Bosnia and Herzegovina has only made limited progress in the reform agenda. When we compare this report with other reports from the region, we see there big, big differences. Yes, on the one side, Bosnia and Herzegovina continues to align with EU foreign and security policy – very important for us that new laws have been adopted on border control and data protection. But we have to see the role of Milorad Dodik. He has initiated unconstitutional actions undermining state laws, and he is always using secessionist rhetoric. Here we must condemn this in the strongest terms we can, and we have to support the unity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. So here we stand at the crossroads. So we should continue with our support for Bosnia and Herzegovina. But we should also have in mind how Milorad Dodik is acting – as he was acting yesterday, as he is doing it today. And I think he will not change in the future.

Madam President, dear colleagues, the situation in Belarus remains one of the most critical challenges facing Europe today. Nearly four years after these fraudulent presidential elections, as my colleague Ms Strack-Zimmermann mentioned, 1 160 Belarusians remain imprisoned not for crimes, but for bravely standing up for their fundamental rights of democracy, dignity and freedom. These political prisoners – journalists, students, trade unionists – are enduring unjust repression under this illegitimate Lukashenka regime. Their detention constitutes a grave violation of fundamental human rights, and we must demand their immediate and unconditional release. Until this happens, we cannot think about normalisation with such a regime. The release of Siarhei Tsikhanouski is a signal for hope, but it's not the end of our fight against this regime.

Madam President, dear colleagues, I want to reiterate when we talk about the Middle East, we have always have to remember the most significant threat in the region stems unmistakably from Iran and its network of proxies like Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis. While Israel's pre-emptive strikes disrupted Tehran's operational capacity, the mullah regime, of course, will seek ways to continue destabilising the whole neighbourhood. And we saw it yesterday: the latest missiles were fired by the Houthis against Israel, and some weeks ago, Iran itself fired missiles on a major American base in Qatar. What we need is to push for diplomatic, political and economic initiatives to help to stabilise the region, like the European Commission is doing it, with the negotiations for a free trade agreement with the UAE. This is a good example of how we should act as a European Union. But the real threat is Tehran.

Mr President, dear colleagues, Europe has played an active role in supporting all the Sahel countries and mobilised more than EUR 600 million for Mali alone since 2014. This has included support for development, humanitarian aid and efforts to stabilise the region and fight and combat terrorism. But we see in Mali, if we fail in our engagement, there is dissolution of political life, the erosion of freedoms are spreading and immediately Russia is active on the ground whenever they see an opportunity. Just three weeks ago, we were on a mission in Mauritania, five kilometres away from Mali, and there we were in the Mbera camp. There are more than 120 000 refugees from Mali. This is another result, if we fail. Thousands of refugees are leaving their homeland. So what I want to say is, even it's very difficult, we have to work very hard to bring Mali back on a democratic path in the interest of the people of Mali.

Mr President, dear colleagues, the Inter-Parliamentary Union, with 181 member parliaments out of 193 countries in the world, expresses each year more and more concern over the growing number of human rights violations against parliamentarians. The number of cases brought before the IPU has more than tripled within one decade, from 311 in 2014 to 956 in 2024. The assassination attempt against Colombian Senator Miguel Uribe is one of these grave attacks on democracy, the rule of law and the fundamental rights of political participation and free expression. Therefore, we have to be in solidarity with Senator Uribe, and the EU must defend human rights and stand clearly against all forms of political intimidation.

Mr President, dear colleagues, we must always have in our mind that the big danger in the Middle East stems unmistakably from the mullah regime of Iran and its proxies, Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen. It is not Israel which is the aggressor. These groups – enriched, equipped and directed by the mullah regime – present a unified front of existential threat to Israel and of destabilisation of the whole region. Israel is under immense pressure. Its pre-emptive strikes aim to disrupt the nuclear ambitions of Iran and degrade its operational capacity. This is an act of self-defence. We should respect it and Europe should support Israel.

Madam President, dear Commissioner, dear colleagues, I want to underline what the Commissioner and also our rapporteur, Šarec, said. Yes, Montenegro is a frontrunner towards EU accession with a fully committed, pro-European government. There is also strong support from society: more than 75 % of the people back EU integration, and European legislation is supported by the governmental parties, but also by the opposition. The country has been using the euro since 2002, and Montenegro has been a reliable partner in NATO since 2017. I was in Montenegro last December, at the time when there was controversy regarding the retirement of a Constitutional Court judge. The Prime Minister took on board the advice of EU diplomats and also politicians, and he agreed to involve the Venice Commission. After their proposal, they found an acceptable and effective solution. So, what I want to say is that the report shows this progress, but it also includes negative points we have to work on, like corruption or a better electoral and judicial system. So finally, it recognises the significant progress. This is the most important thing: Montenegro is on its path for reforms and strong commitment to EU integration.

Madam President, Tundu Lissu is a long life fighter for human rights and democracy, currently serving as chair of Chadema, the biggest opposition party in Tanzania. He was arrested and charged with high treason on 10 April ‑ which carries a death penalty ‑ after calling for electoral reforms during a peaceful rally. International organisations like Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch or the International Democracy Union have condemned Lissu's arrest, with many calls for his release and condemnation of the attacks on political freedoms and human rights. The EU contributes hundreds of millions of euros to Tanzania through various initiatives. We have to be very clear that any European cooperation investment has to be tied to progress in the areas of the rule of law and human rights. The European Commission must closely monitor developments and especially Tundu's trial.