We need to start to see the world as it is rather than how we wish it to be - President Metsola addresses EU Ambassadors  

High Representative, dear Kaja,
Dear Ambassadors,
Dear colleagues,
 
Thank you for giving me a few moments of your time this morning. I would like to start by saying that we shouldn’t understate how serious the situation is, how crucial our next steps will be, or how important a role Europe will need to play.
 
Every week it seems like we are faced with a new geopolitical challenge, and we - as Team Europe - cannot be found wanting. 
 
Kaja and I sometimes meet early in the morning and wonder what this week would bring to us and how when we found ourselves in these positions how important it is that we work together.
 
We are in a new world, a more unpredictable world, a more dangerous world. And for a Union that operates well on predictability and certainty, the last months have been difficult, to put it mildly. In this new world we no longer have the luxury of time to take decisions in the way we have always taken them and expect the world to understand. We need to start to see the world as it is rather than how we wish it to be.
 
Meaning that where decisions need to be taken faster, we need to take them faster. And where a decisive stance or action is required, we need to take it without hesitation. We need the courage to free ourselves from the habits that too often hold us back and pull in the same direction. 
 
Our message to the world is that they should not underestimate Europe’s resolve, strength and willingness to act. We need to allow Europe to be seen as the credible actor that it is.
 
Nowhere is that urgency clearer than in our sustained and consistent support for Ukraine. Where we understand that Europe‘s commitment -  as we enter year five since Russia’s illegal invasion - must match the level of threat and the threat remains clear, it remains present and it remains very real. Ukraine knows that they can rely on Europe as they keep up the fight with immense courage and pride. And as we try to find paths to peace, our position remains unchanged: it must be a real peace with integrity and with dignity based on the principle of nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine - and certainly nothing about Europe without Europe.
 
But we are only as strong as the next crisis, which is why how we continue to respond to what is unfolding in Iran is so important for Europe to get right.
 
The events of the past nine days have finally cracked open a window of opportunity for change. But they have also exposed how far a desperate regime clinging to the remnants of power is willing to go.
 
Iran’s attacks on the Gulf - including in the Strait of Hormuz and the Gulf of Oman - are condemnable, unjustifiable and must stop immediately. Just as every Member State must know for certain that we will stand together to face down any threat.
 
We must continue to stand with the people of Iran. Their fight for freedom and the ability to choose their own destiny is not political but existential. And let me point out that rarely do we see unanimity in our chamber, but our resolutions on Iranian protest have, in the last years, always come as close to that as possible.
 
The Gulf countries are important strategic partners in these efforts. When I visited the United Arab Emirates for the EU-GCC Speakers’ meeting last year - we discussed the very risks that are now unfolding across the region. As if to underline the urgency of those conversations, the Iranian regime attacked Qatar during that visit. That is how quickly theoretical threats become real.
 
It is the same conversation we’ve had on our European neighbourhood. I don’t think I have spoken to a single Head of State, Government or Ambassador who does not agree with criteria led, merit-based enlargement as a geo-political necessity. And yet, the Western Balkans, Ukraine, Moldova - they have been looking to Europe for years. Some have reached important milestones and are looking to us to match their reforms with a response. I’ve said this before, but it bears repeating: the longer we drag our feet, the more space we leave for others to fill-in the void. 
 
Parliament has a critical role here in building legitimacy for the decisions that we take, in all contexts and across the globe. 
 
Of course, we cannot begin to have a serious discussion about strengthening our immediate neighbourhood without resetting our relationship with the United Kingdom. I was in London a few weeks ago and from our meetings with the Prime Minister, Speaker and Members of Parliament I can say that the mood was extremely positive. 
 
For the first time in a decade - there is a shared awareness that this is the moment to build new bridges. A real willingness to find pragmatic solutions that respects the decision of the British people while responding to the realities we face today.
 
There is a window of opportunity to find a way forward that may not exist in perpetuity, we would do well to seize it.
 
It is that spirit that also needs to guide the new Transatlantic relationship. We have our disagreements, sometimes loudly, but the alliance will remain the backbone of our common security and trade. 
 
In the words of Thomas Jefferson, “every difference of opinion is not a difference of principle.” That, in my view, is what our transatlantic alliance is about. It is why it endures. That is not to say we should be naive, or that we should not be open eyed to today’s reality. We must and will continue to adapt in the best interests of Europe.
 
When I addressed this Conference last year, I said that when you look to the European Parliament you will find a reliable partner. That has not changed.
 
I met a lot of you in the run-up to today and I promised many of you to be candid, and I will continue in that vein: the next steps are far too important for us to get caught up in institutional divides. I understand that we each have our own channels - but a real Team Europe moves in tandem, not in parallel. 
 
I don’t want Members of the European Parliament at your heels. I want them to be by your side, that’s how we project true European strength across the globe.
 
It was MEPs who led the difficult path to designate the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organisation. Who championed the idea of Ukraine’s EU membership. They have built bridges everywhere - with Moldova and the Western Balkans.  They’re engaged in Latin America, Asia and Africa. 
 
Through our parliamentary networks with 160 national parliaments, we pass messages and open doors. Trade agreements go through national parliaments - parliaments that we negotiate and engage with every day. Our capacity-building initiatives, democracy support work, inter religious dialogue efforts and EU election observation missions around the world earn Europe credibility and respect. In international fora like the G7 and the G20, our relationships with lawmakers help move the European agenda forward. 
 
And our commitment to parliamentary diplomacy is only getting stronger. It is the reason why we made strategic choice to boost our presence in Washington, the Western Balkans and in the Eastern Partnership countries. And why we have antennas in Latin America, Asia, Africa and the United Nations. They are not extra. They are critical and need to be seen as such. Where Ambassadors recognise their value and ability to open doors, is where Europe delivers the best and I’ve seen it on the ground - how good it can be when we deliver at our best, and where we are best regarded. 
 
I want to end on a hopeful note. I have no doubt in our collective ability to meet this moment in history. Of embracing that which only Europe can do across the world. Of understanding our power in promoting value-based leadership. In supporting liberty, equality of opportunity, the rule of law and how when we cooperate we all win. In showing people in accession countries that their hope is not in vain. That our 12 stars mean as much to us as they do to them. 
 
There is a reason why more and more countries wish to join the EU. There is a reason our enemies have invested so much in undermining our way. There is a reason people on the streets of Iran look to us.  Why elections in the Western Balkans are won and lost on the promise of Europe. People believe in Europe. Europe still means hope. Sometimes we just need to see it within ourselves and remember that away from resolutions, conclusions, reports and institutional relations – we matter to people.  
 
Do not underestimate the importance and the impact of what you all do for people. 
 
Thank you for flying our flag around the world. Let’s keep building together.