(Strasbourg) “Tough battles are awaiting us in the near future, and the European election will be more than a simple election: it will be a political war of principles to defeat extreme liberalism and the nationalist right wings that are threatening Europe itself”. At the same time, “the European project will have to be revived, and unity and solidarity between the peoples of Europe will have to be strengthened”. This morning, the Greek Prime Minister, Alexis Tsipras, gave a speech at the European Parliament as part of the debates about the future of the EU that take place during plenary meetings. Tsipras gave an overview of the years of “pain” that his country experienced as a consequence of the economic and social crisis and of the austerity programme imposed by Europe to tidy up the state’s finances. “We will not make the old mistakes again”, the Prime Minister said, as we will aim instead at having “structural reforms” as well as “well-balanced finances”. In his overview, Tsipras admitted that Athens’ government had made mistakes and criticised some measures that delayed the country’s economic recovery.
“From 2010 to 2014, Greece lost a quarter of the GDP – the head of the Greek government explained – while unemployment and poverty were dramatically growing”. But “then we proved that there’s a way to overcome the crisis without affecting the country’s social fabric”; “we fought corruption”, and now “we will go on with the reforming process”. And lastly: “Xenophobia and racism are gaining ground in Europe nowadays”, yet in such scenario “Greece has dealt with migrants with humanity and in compliance with international law, while other countries are raising barriers. We have opposed to the policy of hatred, we have given lessons in humanity”.