PASOK-Kinal party leader Nikos Androulakis said that "by way of a progressive political plan, we should defend social justice, solidarity, human rights, and environmental protection," while addressing the European Parliament on Tuesday.
"We must make citizens feel safe again in the face of geopolitical, climate and economic challenges of our time," he added, and he also insisted that the EU Recovery & Resilience Fund "must acquire permanent characteristics especially for Greek people, who experienced harsh economic policies."
On Russia's invasion in Ukraine, Androulakis noted that "Putin's illegal and destructive invasion is a tragic event for Ukrainian people and a very expensive lesson for European elites in how to deal with authoritarian revisionist leaders. Appeasement, as it turned out, did not bring results. Strong deterrent measures are needed, there is no other path to a strong and self-reliant Europe."
In reference to Greece-Turkey relations, Androulakis pointed out that "Greek people, after 10 years of continuous crises, and having lost more than 25% of their GDP, are forced to pay billions to shield the sovereignty of our homeland with weapons programs, while at the same time European states are arming the one [country] who threatens it. This is when the decision to embargo arms to Turkey needs to be taken, and anyone else who does not respect International Law."
Regarding price hikes in energy costs and the impact on households and consumers, Androulakis underlined that "the purchasing power of Greeks is the second lowest in Europe (...) while there is no provision in the EU Recovery & Resilience Fund for the construction of social housing for low price renting," which he noted did happen in other countries with similar problems.