On the agenda: the recovery, the Rule of Law, relations with Turkey, Belarus and other items on the European Council agenda.
PES President Sergei Stanishev said:
“Challenges in two areas face the European Council today: internal and geopolitical. Europe deserves a strong response to both. And this can only come from a defence of our values.
“The internal market faces some very difficult times. Socialists and democrats want action to preserve and strengthen it, particularly as an instrument to implement the Social Pillar, Green Deal, and the wider progressive agenda. The recovery plan and MFF will be central here, but we must not give in to the likes of Viktor Orban and others who are trying to blackmail Europe into watering down the Rule of Law. Abandoning European values will never be the solution to a European challenge. We must uphold EU values as the basis of a fair and sustainable recovery.
“The recovery must seize the opportunities of the digital transition to push innovation and create jobs. But it must do so based on strengthened privacy and workers’ rights, and fair taxation of tech firms.”
