European Parliament President Roberta Metsola Appeal in Bucharest: DO NOT GIVE UP ON EUROPE!

On Monday, December 19, Roberta Metsola, the President of the European Parliament, met Romania’s President, Klaus Johannis, in Bucharest. Also, she was welcomed to the Romanian Parliament, where she delivered a speech.

The official visit was another opportunity for European officials to try and appease the people. Also, Metsola reassured Romania has the support of the European institutions, including the European Parliament.

During her speech in the Romanian Parliament, she made an emotional appeal. She asked the Romanian people not to give up on Europe:

I am here, in Romania, today, at this deeply symbolic time, with one message, one appeal: do not give up on Europe! Do not give up on us!

Now, when things are not necessarily as clear as they were two weeks ago, when the shine on rhetoric has been shaded by events, when corruption scandals of a few occupy newspaper inches and tv minutes at the expense of the long hard work of the many.

When it seems that promises long ago made are ignored at the expense of narrow, small, national considerations. When those for whom the European Parliament, just by existing, is a threat, will jump on any of these issues to push more and more people to the comfort of the fringes and extremes.

That is when we are called upon to lead. That is when we have to stand up and stand together – when it is hard, when it is easier to sit back down.

Roberta Metsola in the Romanian Parliament

Metsola also mentioned that Romania had been ready to join the Schengen area for more than ten years and would do it soon.

Is Roberta Metsola afraid that the Romanian boycott of Austrian brands is only the spark igniting nationalists and anti-European feelings in Romania? It might be, as sometimes such movements reach tipping points and cannot be reversed anymore if it’s too late.

Her intervention can be watched in the following video from 15:00 onwards:

The emotional appeal of the EP’s President comes at a delicate moment: the Romanian people are utterly disappointed with the denial of entering Schengen, especially when all the technical conditions have been long ago fulfilled. More than that, it was only one country opposing Romania: Austria. This made Romania withdraw its ambassador from Vienna. Also, as retaliation for the negative vote, Romania initiated the so-called #BoycottAustria movement, and Romanians started boycotting the Austrian brands.

This will favour the nationalist and the anti-European movement in Romania, one of the countries which had huge hopes when joining the EU. This is why European officials try to calm down the voices asking for revenge, as this sort of undiplomatic approach to the scandal will only divide Europe even more.