Antonio TAJANI, EP President, speaks to the press about the European Council, in Brussels.

Brussels

TAJANI, Antonio (EPP, IT)

article 50 of the Lisbon treaty (T)

press conference

European Council meeting 21-22 March 2019 (T)

European Council: Press conference by Antonio TAJANI, EP President. Extracts

Exterior shots of the Council of the European Union (2 shots).

SOUNDBITE (Italian), Antonio TAJANI, EP President, I said that I hoped the British are going to find a way out of this. I emphasised on the fact that the European Parliament feels that the number one priority is to protect the rights of the European citizens in the UK and British citizens living in the rest of the EU. 

SOUNDBITE (Italian), Antonio TAJANI, EP President, I said that the choice between a long and a short delay isn't the most appropriate. Rather, we should think about a useful extension or one that is not useful. On behalf of the Parliament I requested that any extension be as brief as possible and no later than the 18th of April which will be the last day possible for the UK to organise European Parliament elections. 

SOUNDBITE (Italian), Antonio TAJANI, EP President, Secondly for the European Parliament, an extension would only make sense if next week there were to be an agreement in the House of Commons on the withdrawal agreement. Otherwise it would make no sense for an extension and there would be the issue of the organisation of European Parliament elections.

SOUNDBITE (Italian), Antonio TAJANI, EP President, We want to have good relations with China. But we need a level playing field. Our position is clear. Today in the official journal, the EU regulation on foreign investment in Europe is published. This will allow us to check whether any foreign investment is aimed at stealing technology from us. 

SOUNDBITE (Italian), Antonio TAJANI, EP President, Last week the European Parliament voted in a resolution about how concerned we are about the possibility of 5G be given over to Chinese companies. We also want to make sure that the European countries adopt the necessary rules to make sure there are no loopholes in our digital security. 

SOUNDBITE (Italian), Antonio TAJANI, EP President, I also talked about China when it comes to the risk of  disinformation in the forthcoming European elections. Last week Parliament adopted with a vast majority, a resolution which recognises that over the last few years Europe has been victim to propoganda activity and disinformation from Russia, China, Iran and North Korea. 

SOUNDBITE (Italian), Antonio TAJANI, EP President, To set out our ideas, The last working day of Parliament, well I told them when that was and I told the Heads of State and government that the Parliament would be happy to organise an extraordinary session after that official last working day. So I laid out our position. But it's for the states to decide what should be done. 