Leading up to the European Parliament elections in June 2024, Metsola intends to tour all EU Member States, urging citizens to participate in the voting process. Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, speaks to the press with Markéta PEKAROVÁ ADAMOVÁ, President of the Chamber of Deputies of the Czech Parliament, at the end of their meeting during her official visit to Czechia. This transcription is a result of an automatic process. Please check against delivery.

press point

official visit

METSOLA, Roberta (EPP, MT, EP President)

EU - Czechia (T)

Czechia

Prague

president's agenda

PEKAROVÁ, Markéta

Press point by Roberta METSOLA, EP President and Markéta PEKAROVÁ ADAMOVÁ, President of the Chamber of Deputies of the Czech Parliament

SOUNDBITE (English), Markéta PEKAROVÁ ADAMOVÁ, President of the Chamber of Deputies of the Czech Parliament, Thank you very much for coming. Thank you, Roberta, for coming. Welcome in Prague, again. I really appreciated that we are here with Roberta mazzola, president of the European Parliament, paid tribute to all the victims of mass shooting in Charles University. I really thank you for this. And as well as we discussed during our meeting about the upcoming elections to the European Parliament, about the topics we are sure and we try to solve together, because in the European Union, we are united in this solutions, and this is very important I would say.

SOUNDBITE (English), Markéta PEKAROVÁ ADAMOVÁ, President of the Chamber of Deputies of the Czech Parliament, First of the topics I think is security. It's a very important for all of us, for the Czech Republic as well, because we are such close to Ukraine and Ukraine is still in war. And that's why we have to, communicate about, you know, solutions help Ukrainians to win the war because Russian imperialism is here and will be here in the next future as well. The survival is important to solve other, you know, topics connected with our resilience.

SOUNDBITE (English), Markéta PEKAROVÁ ADAMOVÁ, President of the Chamber of Deputies of the Czech Parliament, Our resilience is in all the levels possible. And I think important is in energy and energy supplies and sufficiency of our energies. But as well, we are connected because it helps us, in trade. So to strengthen our cooperation in the European Union, when it comes to, our trade and markets, is very important to be more efficient and then resilient to all challenges, which are coming from all parts of the world.

SOUNDBITE (English), Markéta PEKAROVÁ ADAMOVÁ, President of the Chamber of Deputies of the Czech Parliament, So, these were the topics as well as I raised the question about under representation of Czechs in the EU institutions, we are slowly but increasing our representation in EU institutions. And I am very happy that, Madame Metsola is one of them who is said taking chance for Czechs in her team and institutions. But this underrepresentation is one of the topics we are discussing all the time when we meet each other. And I think it's important for us, as well, to feel the bridge between Czech Republic, Prague and Brussels and all the institutions as well. Thank you very much.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President Thank you very much. And, good afternoon to you all. Thank you, Markéta, for this wonderful welcome in a beautiful Prague, a city, that I always like to visit, to the centre to the very heart of, of, Europe and the European Union, in a year that is very important. 2024 will be not only, the year that we, celebrate, 20 years of Czech Republic in the European Union, but also that all our citizens will go to vote, in the European Parliament elections between the sixth and the 9th of June of this year.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President One of the topics, that I first, raised is that I would like more Czech citizens to vote in these elections. The turnout, has traditionally been quite low in this countries and in this country. And I am conducting this what we have dubbed the Get Out to Vote tour. In going from one country to another to encourage as many people not to let other people decide for them.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President We have seen this before, in the Czech Republic, the European Parliament, is that institution that will, over the next five years, be the place where decisions on where Europe, but also where, Czechia, will go, whether on security, on defence, on the environment, on the protection of farmers, on migration, on enlargement. All these topics that hit to the very heart of what Czech citizens are talking about. And as I will talk with young people in university later on today, but also with Prime Minister Fiala and with President Pavel.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President I also wanted to mention, very quickly, but also the importance that I placed on my first stop in Prague, just before the Jan Palach monument, not only to commemorate the Czech hero, but also to bring memory and also express solidarity with the tragedy that took place with the assassination of young Czech people. For us, that was important. And for me personally, it was important to be present there, with the teachers of the students and representatives of such a symbolic institution in Prague that is the centre of that, freedom of expression and freedom of speech.