The Secretary of State for European Affairs said this Wednesday that “it is time to move from words to deeds” in the energy interconnections between the Iberian Peninsula and the rest of the European Union (EU) to reduce dependence on Russia.
Tiago Antunes, who spoke during a seminar that the European Parliament is promoting with Portuguese journalists, related to the situation in Ukraine, said that the need to reduce the current energy dependency on Russia gives the “impetus” to advance in this process. that has been dragging.
It is time to move from words to deeds. They are great investments, but now is the time to give momentum to this process, ”he said.
The President of the European Commission, Ursula Von der Leyen, announced before the European Parliament that her executive presents this month a European emergency plan to avoid a possible total cut off of the Russian gas supply.
In the meeting with the Portuguese journalists in the European Parliament, the Secretary of State for European Affairs referred to the interconnections between Portugal and Spain, Spain and France, and Italy and Spain, by sea.
Tiago Antunes said that “Portugal has relevant interests to defend” in this matter.
The Iberian Peninsula and, specifically, Portugal, can be an alternative gateway for energy raw materials to Europe and a source of immediate gas supply from other sources – the United States, Nigeria, among others”, he referred.
“The port of Sines can be an alternative source of alternative gas entry and, in the future, a source of production and supply to Europe”, said the Secretary of State, citing green hydrogen as an example.
“We have enormous potential and we have to take advantage of that potential. For this, there must be interconnections between Portugal, Spain and the rest of Europe, both for electricity and gas”.
The official stressed that Portugal “has insisted a lot on this point of interconnections, precisely because it is essential to implement this idea.”
If we want to diversify against supplies that come from the East, that come from Russia, then we have to look at Western Europe as an alternative source of supply of energy raw materials. These are the challenges we have at European level. The effects of the war at various levels, on the need for humanitarian, military and financial aid and, in the future, on reconstruction, which will be very significant and impactful, and the consequences of this war on energy, on the need to find alternatives sources,” he observed.
Tiago Antunes also said that the recent attribution to Ukraine and Moldova of the status of candidate countries to the European Union “implies that these countries have to make an effort of reforms, of preparation, but it also implies that the European Union does its homework and prepare to the accession of these countries.
Zelensky describes the EU decision as “the starting point of the new history of Europe”
“One thing is a Europe of 27, another thing is one day, a European Union, with more than 30 members,” he said.
For this to happen is necessary to initiate a reflection on the institutional and financial architecture. It will have relevant implications for the way the EU works and is organized, how the institutions make decisions and also the financing mechanisms”, she maintained.
Tiago Antunes added that “the EU has to make this reflection and these duties, at the same time that it must require the candidate countries to prepare and make the necessary reforms, introducing the acquis communautaire in their legislation”.
However, the Secretary of State for European Affairs warned of the need to we must not forget “other countries that are already candidates and some of them have been waiting a long time.”
“I am mainly talking about the countries of the Western Balkans (…). It is important, when taking these new steps, not to forget those who are already in this process, which is necessarily long, complex and demanding. That should be. The Copenhagen criteria must be strictly observed, but it is necessary to send signals to these countries to avoid something that would even be counterproductive. Feeding expectations that later have no return and even create a feeling of frustration, detrimental to European interests”, he warned.
“The amendment would be worse than the sonnet. These are the challenges that we have in our hands at a European level, the effects of the war at various levels, the need for humanitarian, military and financial aid and, in the future, the reconstruction that will be very significant and impactful and the consequences of this war against energy, the need to find alternative sources”.
Source: Observadora
