During her speech at Harvard University in the United States on Saturday 25 March, the President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, called for a renewal of transatlantic relations.
“The EU and the US may well be old and close allies but as the global economy struggles to recover, we need to become ever-closer friends and form stronger, mutually-beneficial, economic, social and security ties”, she said.
“The renewal of our transatlantic alliance is crucial if we are to face-up to the new and very dangerous realities shaping our societies and communities. It is true that some people want to turn back the clock 100 years - we must be ready to meet that very real challenge”, added the President of the European Parliament.
Ms Metsola said that beyond being “two of the strongest economic blocs on the planet”, the EU and the US defended fundamental values. Thus, “all of us on either side of the Atlantic must make our voices heard in defence of a strong value-based politics or we risk getting drowned out by populism and giving fuel to those for whom our way of life, simply by existing, is a threat”, she warned.
According to the President of the European Parliament, it is necessary to “re-affirm the need and value of democracy, of multilateralism”.
Highlighting that many people around the world were fighting for freedom on a daily basis, Ms Metsola also explained that Europe and the United States had “a duty and a responsibility”.
“We need to live up to that together. To do this, we cannot be afraid to lead”, she warned, adding that “democracy (required) effort, (deserved) bravery and (needed) leadership”.
See the speech: https://aeur.eu/f/62d (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)