Joseph BIDEN, Vice-President of United States, addresses to MEPs during a formal sitting in the European Parliament in Brussels, the 06/05/2010.

Brussels

EU - USA (T)

speech

BUZEK, Jerzy (EPP, PL)

formal sitting

BIDEN, Joe

Address by Joseph BIDEN, Vice-President of the United States: extracts of the formal sitting

Arrival in the Chamber of Joseph BIDEN, Vice-President of United States.

Applause from the Chamber, Joseph BIDEN, Vice-President of United States, walks to the speaker's table

SOUNDBITE (English), Joseph BIDEN, Vice-President of United States, Together with my former colleagues of US Congress you and I represent more than 800 million people, stop and think about that for a moment, 2 elected bodies that shape the laws for almost 1/8th of the world population, that truly remarkable.

SOUNDBITE (English), Joseph BIDEN, Vice-President of United States, The Obama Biden administraiton has no doubt about the need for and strongly supports a vibrant European Union . We believe it is absolutly essential to American prosperity and long term security, so have no doubt about that.

SOUNDBITE (English), Joseph BIDEN, Vice-President of United States, And I am pleased through the Transatlantic legislative dialogue , you are building a strong relationship with US Congress and I hope that the office you opened in Washington last month is going to enhance those ties.

SOUNDBITE (English), Joseph BIDEN, Vice-President of United States, And I am here to reaffirm that President Obama and I believe in this idea and in a better world and a better Europe it has already helped to bring about, a Europe where all Member States benefit by negotiating trade agreements and fighting environmental degradation with on unified voice, a Europe that bolsters the cultural and political values that my country shares with all of you.

SOUNDBITE (English), Joseph BIDEN, Vice-President of United States, Let me state it flatly Iran nuclear programme violates its obligations under the nuclear non proliferation Treaty and risks sparking a nuclear race in the Middle East.

SOUNDBITE (English), Joseph BIDEN, Vice-President of United States, Teheran faces a start choice, abide by internaitonal rules and rejoin the international community of responsible Nations which we hope for or face furher consequences and increasing isolation, in the face of the threat Iran poses we are committed to the security of all of our allies , that is why we deployed the phase adapted missile defence programme to deter and defend against attacks on this Continent.

SOUNDBITE (English), Joseph BIDEN, Vice-President of United States, We welcom the support package that Europe is considering in conjunctionwith the IMF, and we wiil support it directly and through the IMF of your efforts as you rescue Greece.

SOUNDBITE (English), Joseph BIDEN, Vice-President of United States, The new powers granted at this Parliament in the Lisbon Treaty gave you a greater role in that struggle and agreater imperative to govern responsibly,The US governement and this Parliament have struggled over how best to protect their citizens without yielding the foundational rights under which all of our societies are built.

SOUNDBITE (English), Joseph BIDEN, Vice-President of United States, I don't need to tell this audience about Europe's proud tradition that protecting citizens from government invasion of their privacy, a commitment grounded in respesct for inherent dignity of all people , we call them ineliable rights, we wrote them into our constitution, and America's commitment to privacy is also profound, as profound as yours.

SOUNDBITE (English), Joseph BIDEN, Vice-President of United States, The longer we are without an agreement on the terrorist financing tracking programme the greater the risks of a terrorists attack that could be prevented, as leaders we share responsibilities to do everything we can under the law to protect the 800 million people we collectivly serve. We disagreed before we surely disagree again, but I am equally convinced that the US and the EU can meet the challenges of the 21st Century.

SOUNDBITE (English), Joseph BIDEN, Vice-President of United States, Courage is also what it take to sit down and listen. All this pm I have done all the speaking,be assure that I my government, and my president,that we are back in the business of listening, listening to our allies.