During her official visit to the Republic of Latvia, Roberta METSOLA, EP President gives a joint press briefing with Inara MURNIECE, Speaker of the Saeima (Latvian National Parliament). This transcription is a result of an automatic process. Please check against delivery.

press point

METSOLA, Roberta (EPP, MT, EP President)

EU - Latvia (T)

Riga

Latvia

MŪRNIECE, Ināra (LV)

Joint Press briefing by Roberta METSOLA, EP President, and by Inara MURNIECE, Speaker of the Saeima

https://api.multimedia.europarl.europa.eu/documents/20125/66220584/1666858098731_I232167Chapters%5BSD-EN%5D.srt

SOUNDBITE (Latvian), Inara MURNIECE, Speaker of the Saeima

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President, Thank you. Thank you very much. Dear Madam Speaker, dear Inara, dear journalists, I am honoured to be here today. It is truly a privilege to have been able to address the members of the same celebrating, same as Centenary and Latvia as an independent democratic states.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President,SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President, With Madam Speaker, we have discussed, as you've just heard, Russia's war of aggression and EU assistance to Ukraine energy and the Rail Baltica Project. The European Parliament has very clearly condemned Putin's illegal invasion of Ukraine and supported the adoption of eight packages of sanctions. The deliberate and indiscriminate strikes targeting civilian and infrastructure and cities across Ukraine are shocking.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President, This project on Rail Baltica that will integrate the Baltic states and the European Rail Network, is something that we welcome. Especially the recent grant agreements under the Connecting Europe Facility, which bring the total amount received funding from the EU and national funds to €1.2 billion.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President,SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President, So what we have called for and continue to call for increased sanctions against Russia and Belarus, providing military support to Ukraine, especially air defence systems and heavy weapons. And let me underline that these are necessary if we want Ukraine to win this war and that Russian perpetrators of all the atrocities and war crimes committed in Ukraine be brought to justice.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President,SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President, On energy which is dominating our discussions both on a political, legislative and national level across all parliaments in Europe. Our main aim is to get our bills under control and we can get our bills under control. We can cushion the social and economic impact of the crisis. We can bring down sky high energy prices, but we can only manage if we do this together.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President, The European Parliament calls for the speedy implementation of the proposals relating to the joint purchases and solidarity agreements, and we talked about the excellent examples of solidarity agreements that already exist between Baltic States. And in the medium and long term we have to think about this. What will happen after this winter, in the next spring? We need an overarching reform of our energy markets in order to futureproof our energy supplies.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President,SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President, And finally allow me a word on the Rail Baltica Project. It is a project that I will visit this afternoon as part of my programme. I will also be engaging with a number of young people in order for us to discuss and prepare the initiatives that we need to take for young people to look at Europe as a project, as a continuously evolving project, especially in preparation for the elections in 2024.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President, And that is something that we should build on and look at as a model across the European Union in terms of both increased and more efficient transport but also enhanced security infrastructure. That's it from my end, and I'm happy to answer any questions you may have.

Joint Press briefing by Roberta METSOLA, EP President, and by Inara MURNIECE, Speaker of the Saeima

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Roberta Metsola, President of the European Parliament

EU - Latvia