- 2025-05-21 “E-002036/2025 Answer given by Ms Kos on behalf of the European Commission Ukraine's ownership of the reform and reconstruction process is a basis for the Commission’s support. Through the Ukraine Facility 1 , the Commission ensures that this process advances Ukraine’s EU accession. The Commission’s support for the new public investment management system is essential as it will embed Ukraine’s reconstruction in a framework of strategic planning, transparency accountability, and ensure alignment with pan-European strategies and EU accession requirements. The Commission recognises the role of cross-border cooperation for Ukraine’s recovery and reconstruction. It therefore welcomes initiatives for cross-border cooperation to support Ukraine’s recovery and reconstruction, including based on existing programmes: longstanding Romanian-Ukrainian cooperation supported by the Commission will soon extend to include Moldova-Ukraine cross-border actions. Cross-border initiatives of Chambers of Commerce and business associations can play an important role in reinforcing the Commission’s mobilisation of private sector investments for Ukraine’s reconstruction under the Ukraine Investment Framework – the investment arm of the Ukraine Facility. Cross-border partnerships, including of chambers of commerce, are traditional and very effective partners in the EU cooperation programmes. Trilateral cooperation can follow best practices in this area to further Ukraine’s reconstruction and help integration into the single market. 1 Regulation (EU) 2024/792 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 February 2024 establishing the Ukraine Facility, OJ L, 2024/792, 29.2.2024.”
EU-Moldova relations · EU-Ukraine relations · EU relations with Eastern Neighbourhood
- 2025-02-05 “E-000527/2025 Answer given by High Representative/Vice-President Kallas on behalf of the European Commission The EU continues to support the normalisation of relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan and stands ready to support the parties in their dialogue aimed at achieving lasting and sustainable peace. For this dialogue to be effective, both sides need to desist from hostile or inflammatory rhetoric, and act in respect of the principles of sovereignty, territorial integrity, and the inviolability of borders. The EU has consistently passed this message in the contacts with the Azerbaijani authorities. The EU is ready to mobilise substantial additional support and investments to allow the parties to reap the benefits of peace, including in the areas of connectivity and infrastructure.”
EU-Azerbaijan relations · EU-Armenia relations
- “Our next speaker Mr.. One minute. Mr. president, Commissioner, online piracy of live sports is no longer just a small program. This is organized crime. We're losing over ten, €10 billion annually. Last year in Spain, a network was dismantled of 22 million users around the world. These are huge numbers. If we unless we do something quickly the the laws won't be worth the paper they're written on. They return. Now our response is patch is patchwork. The rules are two different platforms do not do what they're supposed to be doing. And our message to the commission is very clear. We need fast blocking. Responsibility for platforms and cross border rules. We need a common system, common rules. And if not, we need new rules. That is, that should be more adequate for this kind of crimes. Thank you.”
Broadcasting of sports events
- “Just a few comments. On behalf of the U.S.. I would also like to thank all of the speakers. Um, today's discussion have helped us to better understand the dynamic in China and in our continent. Uh, I think what we He should understand is that China is thinking in the long term. And it is important for us to think about their approach based on their political culture. And we need to react efficiently. And also think of a long term approach. And also, um. To to tackle that, we need to have a united response from the EU side. We do not, uh, want to make ourselves vulnerable. We need to coordinate at an EU level and not have this fragmented bilateral agreements. So thank you very much to all of you for your presence and for your patience. Thank you.”
EU-China relations
- “Well, yes. We are all free to have an opinion at this time. Democracy enables us and allows us to believe anything we want. But facts. Show that what we try to, um, to do with this European democracy shield is very necessary. Of course, you are free to comment and to argue anything you want. Thank you.”
EU political integration
- “Commissioner, we see risks daily. Our elections are influenced from the outside. There are coordinated messages, automatic networks, algorithms who promote fear and decide what reaches citizens. We make technical decisions, but they have political effects. In border areas such as Romania. We see these effects because tensions are being exploited, and we see that in some communities that have less access to information, this is being felt. We need concrete, serious measures. We need to screen online platforms before the elections. The authorities and researchers need quick access to data. We need to strictly apply the Digital Services Act and to apply sanctions immediately when we see that it is violated. We need to prevent coordinated campaigns to respond not in weeks, but in hours. Measures for targeting online advertising. We can defend democracy, and we can do so by starting here.”
Disinformation & online freedoms
- “Commissioner. Colleagues. These reports are very important for the future of European security. They start from the following truth. We have a powerful defense industry, but it's fragmented. We have too many bureaucratic barriers and not enough real cooperation. These reports come up with concrete solutions a single market, common procurement, safer procurement chains and common intent. Of course, the defense costs might drop by 30% if we are to increase investing investment in European capacities. But we also send a political message that's important. We need to change our strategy. In Europe, we we used to think that those who are closer to a potential risk should invest more. But this model does not work anymore. We are threatened not only from the east but also in the cyber space. And this strategy no longer protects anyone.”
EU competences on defence
- “Now, this first round table will examine how disinformation campaigns are linked to broader geopolitical challenges, the how they're linked to the EU enlargement process, regional stability. And also we will analyze the influence of external actors. Once again, I would like to welcome our panelists. Miss Martha Turnbull, who is director of the Community of Interest on Hybrid Influence at the European Centre of Excellence for Countering Hybrid Threats. She will be joining us online, and she will kick off our discussion with a general presentation of the issues at hand, the issues that I have already touched upon. Then we have Mr. Daniel Sunter, who's an expert in security and strategic communications. He is here in the room and he will provide information on specific actors, notably how Russia is interfering. Then we have Miss Ana Cristina mosca, a research fellow at the Hellenic Foundation for Foreign Policy. She will also be joining us online, and she will share her expertise on Chinese interests in the region. Each of our speakers will have eight minutes for their presentation, after which we will open the floor for the questions and answers session, and I will now give the floor to Miss Turnbull. Welcome. You now have the floor for eight minutes maximum.”
Foreign interference in Europe
- “Commissioner, dear colleagues, Mr. Mark Rutte, citizen of Europe, has recently joked in the European Parliament about European autonomy in defence. He said it was an unrealistic dream. This is an error on our side. Um, turning today's, uh, dependencies into into an argument against our autonomy is wrong. European autonomy does not mean leaving NATO. It's something that is missing. Something that we need. A European pillar that can invest, can support security throughout time. A weak Europe is bad for the alliance. But a strong Europe is good for a strong alliance. We must not defend a status quo of dependency, of vulnerabilities. This would be irresponsible. We have all that we need. We just need good decisions to use industry resources and capacity together. Thank you very.”
EU competences on defence
- “Commissioner. Colleagues. These reports are very important for the future of European security. They start from the following truth. We have a powerful defense industry, but it's fragmented. We have too many bureaucratic barriers and not enough real cooperation. These reports come up with concrete solutions a single market, common procurement, safer, um, procurement chains and, uh, common intent. Of course, the defense costs might drop by 30% if we are to increase investing investment in European capacities. But we also send a political message that's important. We need to change our strategy. In Europe, we, uh, we used to think that those who are closer to a potential risk should invest more. But this model does not work anymore. We are threatened not only from the east but also in the cyber space. And this strategy no longer protects anyone.”
EU competences on defence
- “Thank you. I'll speak Romanian. Reading international reports pressure that we call transnational repression, of course. That goes against the European norms when it comes to protecting citizens. But on top of that, my colleague from the Patriots, Miss Ellis, said this turkey is an important actor in NATO and in regional security, and has an important role in energy and Black Sea stability and in the Middle East. Cooperation in military, in the military and information is important between the European Union and Turkey. Given this situation, the EU. Needs to find a balance between its objectives when it comes to human rights and our objectives when it comes to security and managing migration, in my opinion, we should have a closer cooperation with Turkey, a dialogue which is more intense so that we can eliminate these influences. Because I think our relation with Turkey should be based on clear objectives, and that involves respect of human rights in the EU. And I have two questions. First of all, Turkey has been confronted with attacks and terrorism. How can we in Europe distinguish between. Organisations which that have organised terrorist actions, and other organisations which organise different types of actions. Secondly, would it be a good idea to block the dialogue with Turkey? Or would it be a bad idea when it comes to protecting Turkish citizens within the EU? Renew for renew. Helmut.”
EU-Turkey relations
- “Thank you.: Thank you, Madam President. Commissioner. A European Democracy shield is not an institutional luxury, but a strategic necessity. Nowadays, democracies are no longer attacked only with weapons, but also through manipulating information, by distorting the election process and by. Making the citizens lose their trust. I'm happy to hear the Commissioner speak of European Centre for Democratic Resilience, connected with national services and capable to monitor and to react to hybrid attacks and interference in real time. The second would be a common framework to protect elections, stabilising databases, transparency in campaign financing and controlling election micro-targeting. Second, uh Rapid Alert System so that citizens can receive verified information before propaganda floods the public space without these mechanisms. Dear colleagues, The next elections will be a target for hostile actors. I hope, Commissioner, that safe and rearm will be helpful.”
Foreign interference in Europe
- “Good morning. Good morning, dear colleagues. Today I moderate in Romanian. Please prepare for translation and for sound of Romanian language. Good morning. I will now open the meeting. We will begin with item one on the agenda. Adoption of the agenda. Dear colleagues, if there are no amendments. I believe we can adopt the agenda of our meeting. I don't see any objections. Any suggestions? So we will adopt it. Second item. Chairs. Announcements. Interpretation is available today in the following 12 languages German, English, Spanish, French, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Dutch, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian and Swedish. I would also like to point out that we do have, um, the imaging application. So, uh, you can find all the documents there. And this meeting is also web streamed. Item number three chairs announcements concerning the coordinators decisions of 17th March. You have all the recommendations of the coordinators. They were emailed to you. If you don't have any objections, we will deem them adopted. No objections. Then they are adopted. Now let's move on to the more important items of our agenda of our meeting. Item number four exchange of views on the fourth report of the European External Action Service on foreign information manipulation and interference threats. Fema dismantling the FEMA House of cards. This was released in March 2026.”
Foreign interference in Europe
- “So as this first item of the day, we have an exchange of views with the European External Action Service, who will present the fourth EA s report on foreign information manipulation and interference threats. Dismantling the FEMA House of cards. This report was published on the 12th of March 2026, and it provides a comprehensive assessment of FEMA activities worldwide based on cases documented and investigated by the EA's. This investigation was carried out in 2025. The report presents a shift from diagnosis to impact through the FEMA deterrence playbook, since in this context of continued escalation, deterrence becomes essential to generate tangible impact in 2025. The European External Action Service detected 540 incidents globally. Ukraine was the main target, followed by France, Moldova and Germany to present the findings of this report. We welcome Jacob Tam. Deputy head of Division of the Eeas. As well as Chiara Pesenti, a data analyst from the Information Integrity and Countering Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference within the Directorate for Strategic Communication and Foresight of the Eeas. Thank you, both of you, for being with us today. You have the floor for about ten 15 minutes.”
Foreign interference in Europe
- “Okay. Great. Let's resume. And I hope everything is working. As I was saying, our colleague McAllister and Miss Wazu, uh, have sent their apologies for their absence. We will replace them, and we will be here for this hearing on democratic resilience and the Western Balkans. We would like to thank all the experts who are participating in the panel. We have 16 languages Croatian, German, English, French, Italian, Dutch, Danish, Greek, Spanish, Portuguese, Finnish, Swedish, Czech, Latvian, Hungarian, Polish and Romanian. Now, as many of you know, the Western Balkans are at a critical crossroads for democracy. We have been seeing more and more disinformation campaigns that exploit social divisions and fuel political polarization. Now, in recent years, the region has been plagued by domestic and foreign actors using traditional and digital media to spread misleading information and exploiting historical grievances, undermining democratic institutions and sowing skepticism towards European integration. Now, as the enlargement policy gains new momentum, we must stop these narratives, which would hinder progress. We have to strengthen independent media, improve media literacy and create professional public communication to counter these harmful effects. And most importantly, we need to help build trust. We need to find trust in information and democratic institutions, and in the EU's long term commitment to the region.”
EU enlargement
- “Dear colleagues is very is very difficult to. After lunch but is necessary to continue. Please prepare for translation. I speak in Romanian.The topic for this afternoon's debate is an exchange of views with the European Union's counter-terrorism coordinator as Mr. Vector on the use of FEMA tools and AI by terrorist groups. This is something that we also discussed at our session this morning. We have the privilege today of welcoming Mr. Barton Vector, who's the European Union's counter-terrorism coordinator, to today's session. Mr. vector is a distinguished Dutch diplomat. Whose career has spanned more than two decades. Navigating the intersections of security, multilateral cooperation and democratic resilience. Mr. vector brings to our committee an invaluable perspective on the evolving nature of threats to our continent. Threats that have fundamentally transformed in recent years. Extending far beyond traditional law enforcement concerns. Into the heart of the democratic processes themselves. Since he took office in the beginning of 2024, Mr. Vector has been instrumental in coordinating the EU's comprehensive response to terrorism. He's helped ensure that the fight against terrorism and the EU's counter-terrorism strategy, and any impact on EU security, is sufficiently taken into account in policy making and legislative proposals. Mr. vector's expertise encompasses a broad spectrum of contemporary security challenges, including the use of tools and AI by terrorist groups, which is, of course, the subject of today's exchange. Mr. vector has consistently emphasized the fact that security challenges are no longer isolated. They no longer exist in silos, but rather are deeply intertwined elements of a broader assault on European democratic integrity. And they require coordinated action across all our institutions, member states and societal actors. His unique position allows him to observe how terrorism, disinformation and hybrid interference converge in ways that require unprecedented levels of institutional cooperation and strategic foresight. We are eagerly looking forward to hearing his insights on how we can strengthen Europe's defence mechanisms across all of these dimensions. So I would now invite Mr. Vector to take the floor. You have ten minutes. You have the floor, sir.”
Surveillance equipment & spyware
- “Mr.. Thank you. In the European democracy, shield. Enters its last. Stage, namely the implementation for us who lived through the Communist times in the eastern part of Europe. It's important to mention that this project should keep being transparent, and we should keep up the dialogue even with the enemies of democracy. There are certain conditions that need to be met. The European Centre for Democratic Resilience should be set up as soon as possible. We should all know who is going to take care of this. Then we need to have the transparency of the instruments we use the protocol drafted for incidents, those who coordinate actions. We need guidelines, we need public procedures. And in the end, we need a third element which is very important, namely the way in which countries actually enforce their obligations. We need to monitor this process and it should be transparent as well when it comes to free media. There is no democracy without it and we should monitor the situation very closely. Thank you.”
EU Supervision of the Rule of Law