CONSTANTINE AN. TASSOULAS: Honorable Madam President of the European Parliament, it is with great pleasure that I welcome you and your esteemed colleagues to the Presidential Mansion.
I see you as a representative of the European Parliament, the only institution of the European Union that is directly elected by the European people and thus responds to the expectations, demands and dreams of the European citizens.
Europe, Madam President, is currently facing enormous challenges. These begin with the effort to bring peace to Ukraine and relate to Europe’s security and defense. They are also linked to the migration issue, the tremendous climate crisis, issues related to the demographic problem and, in addition, to the social pillar of Europe, as well as its further democratic safeguarding.
Europe will be able to confront all of these issues the more united it is and the more it promotes its strategic autonomy, which is one of the greatest goals the European Union has ever had. In this effort, the European Parliament, which directly represents the peoples of Europe, is called upon to play an important role and to help in this direction. National Parliaments are also called upon to assume the same role, in order for Europe to be able to face the challenges and emerge safer and more democratic.
At the moment, Madam President, the citizens of Europe, despite the great progress that has been made at the economic, social and political level, see that many issues of their own lives, of their own daily routine, remain unresolved. And this is an important problem that must be addressed.
The new program, which you will inaugurate today, in a short while, here in Athens, the “Europa Experience” program, not only promotes the participation of European citizens in the implementation and the conception of solutions to their problems, but also strengthens the necessary transparency in decision-making.
And with these thoughts, dear friend, Madam President, I welcome you to Athens, I welcome you to the Presidential Mansion.
ROBERTA METSOLA (from unofficial translation): Your Excellency, Mr. President of the Hellenic Republic, thank you very much for the invitation and for your warm welcome. May I congratulate you on your new office. The last time we met, in February 2024, you held the office of the President of the Hellenic Parliament. Our meeting took place shortly before the elections in Europe. We had the opportunity then to delve deeper into our discussion about what exactly European citizens wanted from Europe, how they viewed Europe then and how they would like to see it in the future.
If, therefore, we must refer to some of the challenges that our peoples face today and understand what exactly they want from Europe, we realize through the discussions we have had in all countries that European citizens want the European Union, all of us, to be present at all times close to them, at the points where they face the problem. They do not want us to be simply people and institutions that legislate in Brussels. They want their life to be easier, they want it to be fairer and safer.
These are dreams, these are desires expressed by citizens across Europe. We are called upon to confront enormous challenges. Challenges in terms of security, in terms of the economy, a war is raging in our continent, in our neighborhood, there are tremendous economic challenges. Farmers across Europe are particularly disturbed and are facing very serious problems. Young people are worried about their future. However, even in a country like Greece, we realize that in these problems we also have the solutions.
Europe can provide solutions. And it can really help its people have an easier and better life. It can help young people, it can help small and medium-sized businesses, which are the backbone of entrepreneurship and the economy in the European Union, by providing them with safer and simpler procedures.
And, of course, we must address the enormous challenge of migration and security in general. We must also help Ukraine face its struggle for freedom more successfully. We must stand by its side and, of course, we must strengthen the legislative process already underway in the European Union for a broader and stronger legislative framework on migration.
Thank you very much.
