Greece’s leader has argued that the 2019 EU parliamentary elections are not just a run-of-the-mill vote. With members at odds over migration, Brexit and rising right-wing populism, Europe’s soul depends on the outcome.
European nations must stand together to fight extremism and avoid sliding back into the past, Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras told EU parliamentarians in Strasbourg on Tuesday as he looked to the upcoming EU elections in 2019.
The politician from the left-wing Syriza party, who had been invited to the EU parliament to speak about the future of Europe, described next year’s vote as “more than just one more election.”
“It will be a fight of basic principles and values to defeat extreme neo-liberalism and far-right populism,” the Greek leader said. He called on the bloc’s pro-European and democratic forces to unite and “stand side by side on the same side of history.”
The European Union currently faces a broad range of challenges, including migration management, the UK’s departure from the bloc, and the rise of right-wing populism, which have led to internal disagreement among its 28-member states and could significantly impact its future direction.
Alexis Tsipras ✔@tsipras_eu The EU’s failure to provide democratic & functional responses to modern challenges, will result in the triumph of chauvinism and the revival of nationalist antagonisms. It will transform Europe into a fragmented continent, without unity, consistency, and prospect. #FutureofEurope 63 11:01 AM – Sep 11, 2018
✔@tsipras_eu
The EU’s failure to provide democratic & functional responses to modern challenges, will result in the triumph of chauvinism and the revival of nationalist antagonisms. It will transform Europe into a fragmented continent, without unity, consistency, and prospect. #FutureofEurope
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New asylum measures needed
Tspiras’ speech took place the day before European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker will deliver his State of the Union address to the same parliament. Juncker is expected to address migration policy, such as by proposing to strengthen the EU’s external borders.
Conservatives and populist governing coalitions in Austria, Italy and many other central European countries have pushed for closing Europe’s borders while other nations have called for greater solidarity and redistribution of asylum-seekers.
At the height of migration flows in 2015, Greece had been the landing point for hundreds of thousands of refugees. On Tuesday Tsipras called for reforms to the EU asylum system while underscoring that his country had done what it could to manage refugee flows within the framework of international law.
Read more: Greece: Residents and refugees work together to rebuild Lesbos
For more read the full of article at The Dw
