Debate contributions by Hélder SOUSA SILVA

Madam President, Mr President-in-Office of the Council, Commissioner, the conclusions of the extraordinary Council represent the recognition of a European strategy which, for decades, has developed a weak and contradictory security model, a Europe that is geopolitically relevant, but without the necessary instruments of power to influence its own neighbourhood. We're running now to make up for lost time. Security is not just another public policy, but the existential condition of all public policies. The time of war is also distinct from the time of bureaucracy in Brussels. As Europe deliberates, the front lines move, defence industrial capabilities change, and vulnerabilities deepen. With the ReArm Europe plan, it is undeniable that a new window of opportunity opens up for Europe. It's really time to change.

Madam President, Commissioner, water is a source of life! And I ask: what is the European strategy for water management? The goal is that we can ensure that future generations have access to water for consumption and also for the various economic activities, particularly agriculture. Southern Europe, and particularly Portugal, currently suffers from high water scarcity. In our case, the regions of Alentejo and Algarve are the most affected. Portugal presented yesterday the National Strategy for Water Management, which is called "Water that unites", which foresees to solve the shortage of water, both for human consumption and for other uses. An investment of more than €5 billion is planned. I therefore hope that the European Union will show solidarity, that it will assume its responsibilities and that it will help the Member States. Water is life in the territories, water is social cohesion, water is economy, water is security. Yes, I am talking about water and the water that unites us in the European Union.

Mr President, Commissioner, the agreement with Mercosur is a fair agreement, a balanced agreement and a good agreement from a geopolitical, economic and social point of view. There is no doubt that for industry it is a good agreement and that we must include guarantees from the point of view of the agricultural sector. Additional guarantees are provided for in this latest version of the agreement, which include: gradual stages of implementation, quotas, maximums and safeguards, in particular for beef, subsidies and financial support for any farmers affected, protection for more than 350 European products, conditioning the entry of products from Mercosur that do not comply with environmental and health rules, and compliance with the Paris Agreement and the fight against illegal deforestation. Excellent work done by the European Commission. It's taken us 20 years to get here. Stop lying, stop and let's speed up and sign this deal.

Madam President, Commissioner, Minister, ladies and gentlemen, the European Union is currently facing one of the most critical moments in its history. It is at a turning point, where the capacity for reinvention will determine whether the European Union will be a protagonist or a mere spectator. The Competitiveness Compass thus appears to be an important, ambitious and framing document, but it needs to be operationalised. I believe that the InvestEU programme should be at the heart of the operationalisation of European competitiveness. Each euro invested through InvestEU generates up to EUR 15 in additional investment, and InvestEU acts as a financial instrument of economic sovereignty capable of creating a genuine Europe-wide development strategy. Thus, the Compass for Competitiveness represents a first step. It now takes political courage from both the European institutions and the Member States to take action.

Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, we have unfortunately counted three years of war in Ukraine this February as a result of the illegal occupation that Russia unilaterally decided to carry out. Thousands killed and wounded, millions displaced, billions of euros of damage, generations lost and a people shattered. What did the Ukrainian people do to suffer in this way? That's the question. They simply want to be members of the European Union and members of NATO, they want to enter the first world division of countries that cultivate the values of peace, human rights and the rule of law. They just want to have a better life. There are no just wars, but this is really the height of injustice. From the first minute, the European Union provided support to the Ukrainian people and government. The war against Ukraine is also a war against the European Union, so we will continue to support the Ukrainian people and Ukraine until it is a free country.

Mr President, security and defence have finally become priorities of our Union. Security and defence, after food and water, are at the bottom of the pyramid of human needs. Without security and defense there are no social rights. And investment in defence is not just an expense, it has a multiplier effect on the economy, as well as job creation, scientific research and social development. Strengthening defence can and should be financed without sacrificing the European social model, for example through European RRP-type loans with greater involvement of the European Investment Bank, as well as greater fiscal freedom for Member States. Diplomacy is only effective when it is backed by a credible defence capability. Countries that do not have military means of their own become dependent on the goodwill of others. Therefore, the European Commission cannot wait until 2028 to act, because that would be to lose another three years and give our opponents a competitive advantage.

Mr President, Commissioner, desertification is a growing challenge facing the European Union, especially in the southern Member States and particularly those close to the Mediterranean. Lack of water, soil depletion and climate change are now a harsh reality in some parts of the Union and, in addition, we are also witnessing the depopulation of some inland regions due to a lack of attractiveness and competitiveness. Portugal faces these two problems cumulatively. The regions of Alentejo and Algarve show a brutal lack of water, both for agriculture and human consumption. And regions close to the border with Spain suffer from depopulation. As a result of these two situations, we are witnessing migration flows from the hinterland to the coast, from rural areas to urban areas, which are real problems. That is why I believe that the next multiannual financial framework must respond to desertification and depopulation and thus solve the problem of territorial cohesion that we face in our Union.

Madam President, Minister, Commissioner, I believe that the hour of fiery speeches is over. We need to get to work. We need to make it happen. Yes, defence is a primary responsibility of the Member States. And yes, as MEPs, we have a responsibility to be an active voice in justifying the Union's increased investment in defence, whether we are in the north, the centre or the south of Europe. But the European Union also has a crucial role: Be the engine of change. This means joint purchases of military equipment, ensuring effective coordination and standardisation of equipment. It means having the courage and vision to realize the cluster European defence industries, thus ensuring their single market or even moving forward with the defence bonds. There's no time to waste. Let us make European defence a real priority for all of us.

Mr President, Minister, Commissioner, by operating ghost fleets through shell companies, Russia has created a new model of proxy warfare that threatens Europe and the world. It is not only in the Baltic, the Atlantic and the Mediterranean that they also walk. While we are here, these ships map in detail the location, state and possible vulnerabilities of our submarine infrastructure, both telecommunications and energy, mostly not for immediate sabotage, but to enable further attacks. Our tolerance of this hostile behaviour must end. I therefore propose that the European Union, in close coordination with NATO, should create a task force to make every effort to sanction and dismantle these fleets and thus ensure the safety of our critical underwater infrastructure.

Madam President, Commissioner, history is history only because of the collective memory that we all perpetuate, whether in words, deeds or images. At the same time, deliberate acts of historical revision are Russia's only option when it wants to paint the invasion of Ukraine as justifiable. Russia uses disinformation and historical bias to rewrite the past, justify the present, but above all to manipulate the future. They want to turn victims into culprits and justify the invasion of Ukraine as a historical inevitability. But the truth is only one and it is very clear: Ukraine is a sovereign nation. Your people have chosen freedom, they have chosen Europe and they have chosen, above all, democracy. It is up to us to expose the lies and defend the historical truth. The war against Ukraine is also a war against the truth and the values that underpin Europe. Sophia de Mello Breyner, a Portuguese poet, said: We see, hear and read. We cannot ignore it.

Madam President, Commissioner, without drinking water we have no life. The last century was a time to secure and bring drinking water to the homes of European citizens. It was a great battle, but it's not over yet. Climate change, the pollution of aquifers and the destruction of infrastructure are jeopardising the water supply in some latitudes of the Union. Southern Europe, in particular Portugal, in the Algarve and Alentejo area, as well as southern Spain, already experience great difficulties not only in having water for agriculture, but also water for human consumption. Water that 30 years ago was 30 meters high, today is 300 meters deep. This means that it is ten times further away and of worse quality. The European Union, in collaboration with the affected Member States, must make water scarcity its top priority.

Madam President, Commissioner, since time immemorial there have always been natural disasters. However, climate change has increased the occurrence of these disasters, leading, unfortunately, to thousands of deaths, millions affected and trillions of euros of damage. In addition, the disorder of the territory with man-made construction in places of risk, has clearly aggravated the situation. The Draghi and Niinistö reports made it very clear that we must focus on prevention. The RESTORE Fund provides excellent help to all those affected by floods, floods and forest fires, particularly in Portugal and Spain. The budget for 2025 already foresees EUR 3 billion to address situations where RESTORE enters. That is why we must invest everything in prevention, because recovery always costs much more in euros and especially in human lives. This is the path that the Union and the Member States must take.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, 35 years ago the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child enshrined the fundamental right to quality education. However, according to last year’s European Commission report on monitoring education, only two EU countries – Cyprus and Croatia – were not short of teachers. This is a real barrier to access to education and the full development of our children. Fortunately, Portugal is now making progress in solving this problem, significantly reducing the number of students without a teacher this year. But as long as there is a student without a teacher, we cannot lower our arms. And it is also imperative to improve working conditions in teaching and make it more attractive to future generations of teachers. Because education is the greatest social elevator, we will never give up fighting for the rights of our children.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, decades of underinvestment in security and defence in the European Union have left us completely vulnerable. The Niinistö report stresses the urgency of a response capacity that integrates both the military and civilian sectors. The proposal to strengthen the EU Civil Protection Mechanism, which I fully support, is an essential step in this direction, as we have seen in relation to the recent disasters that have occurred in Europe. Between fires in Portugal, floods in central Europe and now in Valencia, no citizen has been immune. In the next Multiannual Financial Framework, this should be a financial instrument that, across the board, is put at the service of this cause. Security is a public good and it is the main function of the state, it is our greatest responsibility towards all citizens of the European Union.

Madam President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, the ocean is clearly an indispensable ally for the European Union to strengthen its competitiveness in strategic areas such as innovation, food security, energy autonomy and environmental sustainability. That is why I say that the European Ocean Pact is a great opportunity. Protecting coastal areas and fishing communities is a clear goal, but we also need to ensure fair remuneration for professionals. I commend the delimitation, last week, by the Azores, of the largest marine protected area in Europe, protecting 30% of its sea. And, as mayor, I actively participated in the delimitation of the protected marine area of Ericeira, Sintra and Cascais, the first in Portugal, which actively involved the local community in its delimitation. Given the intrinsic relationship between our communities and the seas around us, I would say that the preservation of the European Atlantic axis is a goal of all of us.

Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, Draghi's report is very clear: Without skilled workers, our future is clearly at risk. Today, skills go far beyond mathematics and grammar, you need to master digital and also master cross-cutting areas such as sustainability and creativity. Here, Erasmus+ is truly an ally and this programme is much more than mobility, it is a bridge between education and the labour market. Therefore, the cuts proposed by the Council for the Erasmus+ programme are a strategic mistake and are truly unacceptable. This is why Parliament is right to propose a reinforcement for the year 2025 of around EUR 70 million. Now is the time to act, strengthening competitiveness, by strengthening training in our Union.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, organised crime is a serious and growing threat to the internal security of the European Union. According to Europol’s estimates, this criminal phenomenon generates more than EUR 110 billion annually, with highly sophisticated criminal networks operating in various sectors, from drug trafficking to cybercrime, tax crime to human trafficking networks. In Portugal, according to the Annual Internal Security Report, data show that the vast majority of drug trafficking offences involve international networks active in several European countries. In 2023, more than 50% of reported criminal activities in the European Union had a digital component. They have affected critical sectors such as health, finance and even public infrastructure. And these attacks are more and more constant, but also more sophisticated. And so, in order to respond to such a threat, we must strengthen cooperation between European security forces and the exchange of information between Member States. It is also crucial to step up investments in Europol, Frontex and the European Public Prosecutor’s Office, the latter with brilliant results in recent years. Institutions are pillars in protecting our citizens and fighting criminal networks that do not respect borders. However, it is not enough to act repressively, it is necessary to act preventively. Educational and community programs that strengthen local resilience are essential to avoid recruitment, especially in the younger layers. We need to support a multifaceted approach that combines law enforcement with social inclusion policies, empowering our communities. I will always say that in Europe crime can never compensate.

Madam President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, Ukrainians, it is from this Chamber that the largest have been leaving since February 2022, and I will say the most convinced words of support from the European Union for Ukraine. Today, on behalf of the Portuguese delegation, I would like to reiterate and even reinforce the solidarity that has been assumed. The defence of Ukraine is the defence of European values and principles and is a responsibility, above all, of all of us. At the beginning of a new mandate, when we are defining the strategy for the next five years, it is our obligation to continue to use this plenary to give confidence, but above all to truly support those who defend on the ground, at the sacrifice of their lives, the values that we embody here. The victory of Ukraine, in addition to the more than just victory of the Ukrainian people, will be the victory of Europe and the democratic values we stand for. Long live Ukraine!