During the plenary session (26-29 April 2021) in the European Parliament in Brussels, MEPs debate on the outcome of the high level meeting between the EU and Turkey of the 6th of April.

Brussels

statement

debate

plenary session

EU - Türkiye (T)

WEBER, Manfred (EPP, DE)

GARCÍA PÉREZ, Iratxe (S&D, ES)

MICHEL, Charles (BE)

VON DER LEYEN, Ursula (DE, EC)

European Council meeting 25-26 March 2021 (T)

The outcome of the high level meeting between the EU and Turkey of the 6th of April: extracts

Cutaways : arrivals of Charles MICHEL, President of the European Council and Ursula VON DER LEYEN, President of the EC. (7 shots)

SOUNDBITE (French), Charles MICHEL, President of the European Council, Regarding the protocol incident on a number of occasions, I have expressed my regret publicly for the situation that was created. My apologies to the Commission and all those who felt offended by the facts behind it are well known. The Council protocol team did not get access to the meeting room before the meeting was held and the Commission did not send its protocol team in advance. So the teams did not enjoy access to seat allocation before the meeting started.

SOUNDBITE (French), Charles MICHEL, President of the European Council, I know that these circumstances led to a number of you to believe that at that point I should have taken a different line of conduct. And obviously I hear that criticism. But at that time, and without the hindsight we all have today, I decided not to react further so as not to create a political incident that I thought would be still more serious and would risk ruining months of political and diplomatic groundwork made by all our teams at a European level.

SOUNDBITE (French), Charles MICHEL, President of the European Council, I understand that the images will have offended many women, and I would like to reaffirm my total, full and absolute commitment to support women and gender equality. This is a matter that I've regularly dealt with in my political career. In our discussions with President Erdogan, President Von der Leynen, and myself, both firmly and forcefully stated our positions as regards Turkey's withdraw from the Istanbul Convention. Several of you have written to me or contacted me over recent days to suggest that that incident be used to defend all the more strongly the role and right of women. And I would like to grasp that extended hand and use that dynamic to make positive progress.

SOUNDBITE (English), Ursula VON DER LEYEN, President of the EC, I am the first woman to be president of the European Commission. I am the President of the European Commission. And this is how I expected to be treated when visiting Turkey two weeks ago : like a Commission President. But I was not. I cannot find any justification for what I was treated in the European treaties. So I have to conclude that it happened because I am a woman. Would this have happened if I had worn a suit and a tie?

SOUNDBITE (English), Ursula VON DER LEYEN, President of the EC, Many of you will have made quite similar experiences in the past, especially the female members of this House. I'm sure you know exactly how I felt. I felt hurt and I felt alone as a woman and as a European, because it is not about seating arrangements or protocol. This goes to the core of who we are. This goes to the values our Union stands for. And this shows how far we still have to go before women are treated as equals, always and everywhere.

SOUNDBITE (English), Ursula VON DER LEYEN, President of the EC, Of course, I know that I am in a privileged position. I am the president of an institution which is highly respected all around the world. And even more important, as a leader, I can speak up and make myself heard. But what about the millions of women who cannot ? Women who are heard every day in every corner of our planet. But neither have the power to hold the office to speak up.

SOUNDBITE (English), Ursula VON DER LEYEN, President of the EC, When I arrived at the meeting, there were cameras in the room. Thanks to them, the short video of my arrival immediately went viral and caused headlines around the world. There was no need for subtitles. There was no need for translations. The images spoke for themselves. But we all know thousands of similar incidents, most of them far more serious, go unobserved. Nobody ever sees them or hears about them because there is no camera, because there is nobody paying attention. We have to make sure that these stories are told too.

SOUNDBITE (German), Manfred WEBER (EPP, DE), MEP 6 - 9th parliamentary term, It was a message of weakness and lack of unity. Where is the EU respected the Union? That is the question that remains after this visit and therefore we need to put things right after this visit. The first and second class presidents do not exist. We have different tasks that we share out through the Lisbon Treaty. It's all spelled out and we expect that these issues be dealt with properly.

SOUNDBITE (Spanish), Iratxe GARC&#205;A P&#201;REZ (S&amp;D, ES), MEP 6 - 9th parliamentary terms, I'm very disappointed. Disappointed by the embarrassing image of the EU that was captured in that meeting in Ankara, because right there in the "sofa" scene, something was laid bare that we women knew all along. But that is far too often ignored. It's very, very difficult for us to reach positions of responsibility. It's very difficult to break those glass ceilings. I know Mr. Michel that this was not your intention and that you didn't notice it. You didn't realise the consequences of that protocol, but that's precisely the problem. That's the problem. You don't notice. That's what needs to change in our societies.