/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/prisa/XZP6DXMZ4BEBXJE7JZAML5OXZU)
Sánchez, on the rise in energy due to the war: “We have to give a European response and not 27 different responses”
The President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, appears at a joint press conference with the Italian Prime Minister, Mario Draghi, and the Prime Minister of Portugal, António Costa. “One of the lessons that we have to draw from the pandemic can also serve to respond forcefully, as we are doing, to Putin’s Russia and his invasion of Ukraine, and that is with the unity of the Member States. In short, what we are playing for in this unilaterally open conflict, and in an unfair and unjustified manner by President Putin, is also the way of understanding and living in Europe, of freedom, democracy, social justice and respect for the state of law. Since Putin’s terrible, unjust and unjustifiable invasion of Ukraine, the EU, as the Italian Prime Minister said, I think has reacted forcefully, supporting Ukraine first, welcoming not the hundreds of thousands, but the millions of refugees who in a few days have had to move as a result of this war, sanctioning the Putin regime, in short, doing everything in Europe’s power to stop this war”.
Sánchez continues: “What cannot be is that the consequences of the war, which translate into a significant increase, an unbearable volatility in energy and gas prices, be responded to in 27 different ways depending on which State is member. All European countries are affected in the same way by this energy crisis, which has been caused by a single person, who is Putin, therefore, we have to give a European response and not 27 different responses, depending on the country, a common problem.
Sánchez continues: “If we are aware that we have to redefine our relations as an EU with respect to Russia, it is also evident that Europe has to correct its vulnerabilities and its weaknesses in the energy market. And here I would like to refer to its two aspects: security of supply, which is key. The four countries that join us today [además de los primeros ministros de Portugal e Italia y Sánchez también ha participado en la reunión por videoconferencia el primer ministro griego] We offer the rest of the EU all our efforts to achieve the diversification of energy sources as soon as possible. We are aware of the role that the Iberian Peninsula can play”, he says.
And he adds: “And secondly, as Prime Minister Draghi said, the urgency, the urgency in addressing the escalation in electricity and gas prices, which is absolutely unaffordable for the economy, for industry, for small and medium-sized companies and for the citizens of the EU”. And Sánchez closes: “What is evident, what is peremptory, what has been demonstrated, is that only with European responses are we going to be able to solve this problem, which is European. And that we must do it urgently, decisively, we cannot wait beyond March 25, and that is why it is important that not only the message come out that we have to act together, but that we have to do it now. We are late, we should have done it before and, therefore, the decision that the governments that are present here share is to transfer the urgency to the European Council and the European Commission because there is an emergency situation”.
In the video below these words you can follow the press conference:
