Nikos Androulakis: "Last dance" for a full presence in the European Parliament

Yesterday Nikos Androulakis made his last speech to the European Parliament from which he resigned

By Stefania Mourelatou*

THE Nikos Androulakis held on Thursday his last speech in the European Parliament, posting it on twitter with the words “last dance”. In his two terms, the President of PASOK-Movement of Change, fought many and difficult battles for the national interests.

In the field of foreign policy, the Amendment adopted by the EP on its own initiative, to impose an arms embargo on Turkey, dominates. Often with his interventions, he highlighted the problems faced by the Greek minority in Istanbul, Imbro and Tenedos, the protection of the Ecumenical Patriarchate and its role, as well as World Cultural Heritage monuments such as Hagia Sophia in Istanbul and the Monastery of Chora, the Panagia Sumela in Pontus and Agia Sophia in Trebizond.

In 2018, he participated as a rapporteur for the Socialists in the strengthening of the European Civil Protection Mechanism with the establishment of rescEU, a pan-European pool of means, including aerial means of forest firefighting.

The first activation of rescEU was made by Greece in August 2020 during the fires in Evia. Also, thanks to rescEU, it was possible and was possible to purchase medical equipment such as uniforms, gloves and respirators to deal with the pandemic

In 2020, in the negotiations with the Council, he succeeded in increasing the budget to 3 billion euros from 450 million, increasing the co-financing rate for the purchase of firefighting planes and helicopters from rescEU to 100%, as well as strengthening prevention by adopting the pan-European resilience goals.

With his letters to the then President of the European Parliament, David Sasoli, he had raised the issue of the convicted gold digger, I. Lagou, so that he could not speak until his immunity was lifted.

In the context of the reform of the European Emissions Trading System, with an amendment that he had submitted to the Plenary of the European Parliament, he had succeeded in getting Greece into the Modernization Fund and receiving European money, amounting to 800 million euros, for the upgrade of the network.