During Question Time, MEPs quiz Commission Vice-President Jourová about EU governments’ preparedness to combat foreign interference, especially ahead of the European Elections, including from Russia.

Strasbourg

debate

plenary session

EU - Russia (T)

JOUROVÁ, Věra (EC)

MAYDELL, Eva (EPP, BG)

OLEKAS, Juozas (S&D, LT)

NEUMANN, Hannah (Greens/EFA, DE)

LOISEAU, Nathalie (Renew, FR)

foreign affairs and security policy (T)

Information security of EU governments against foreign interference, in particular by Russia: extracts from the question time with the Commission

SOUNDBITE (Romanian), Eva MAYDELL (EPP, BG), Do you think that the decline in election fairness, satisfaction is a dangerous threat and opens the door for Russian manipulation in the upcoming European elections?

SOUNDBITE (English), Věra JOUROVÁ, Vice-President of the EC in charge of Values and Transparency, We want the elections to be free and fair in the sense of free from manipulation. And that's why I ask the political parties to resist the temptation to use the message like deepfakes. And at the same time to use their communication to encourage the voters activity and action.

SOUNDBITE (French), Nathalie LOISEAU (Renew, FR), Neither our Parliament nor the Council should look at the poisoning of our democracies as just a lobbying harmonisation problem. Transparency needs to be the rule for all conduits of influence, and we need to learn to protect our citizens just as way this is how we protect our consumers. Where are the debates in the Council going at the moment? Can we broaden this out so that we don't actually miss the target when we shoot at it here?

SOUNDBITE (English), Věra JOUROVÁ, Vice-President of the EC in charge of Values and Transparency, Our proposed directive seeks to achieve as big as possible transparency on these contracts and on the purpose of these contracts. This is mainly lobbying or organising events and influencing the political decision making in our Member States. Transparency is key and I think that we have to make a progress here.

SOUNDBITE (German), Hannah NEUMANN (Greens/EFA, DE), What do you know about the role of right wing extreme politicians in terms of dissemination of this kind of disinformation? And how do you plan to combat that?

SOUNDBITE (English), Věra JOUROVÁ, Vice-President of the EC in charge of Values and Transparency, Mr. Putin needs the people, the mouth, which will speak domestic language. So he is using the willing collaborators in each member state. So they are either individuals or some some parties or movements which are out of the parliaments in some member states. So we already see parliamentary parties and unfortunately we also see some parties which are in our member states governments, which now do not hesitate to spread in their country, in their in their society, the pro-Kremlin narratives.

SOUNDBITE (English), Hannah NEUMANN (Greens/EFA, DE), Would you mind to clearly name some of these domestic perpetrators so that our citizens are very aware when they hear them speak, what their messages and who stands behind those messages?

SOUNDBITE (English), Věra JOUROVÁ, Vice-President of the EC in charge of Values and Transparency, I am hesitant whether to name and shame. Yes, this is a shame in my view. I hesitate whether to name the political parties which spread the narratives because I don't want to spread their fame and create that visibility.

SOUNDBITE (Latvian), Juozas OLEKAS (S&amp;D, LT), Thanks to investments, certain persons generate income also here in Europe. We can see that various companies that have a legal link with Russia now, they are much more favourable towards the situation in Russia. Don't you think that this legal trade and investment into Russia should be prevented even more strictly or we should then demand that they pay a war tax because they trade with an aggressor?

SOUNDBITE (English), Věra JOUROVÁ, Vice-President of the EC in charge of Values and Transparency, We cannot just over overnight say that the legal business has to be stopped. My personal view is that every business which is helping Russia in the war or which is making money on the horrible war and misery and catastrophe which Russians are doing in Ukraine, every such business should be stopped.