Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/776046
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 22 JANUARY 2017 11 Europe Do you agree with the accession of Turkey to the EU under the present circumstances prevailing in the country under Erdogan? TCC: No country should gain EU membership if they don't respect human rights, and there are grave doubts on how much they're being respected in Turkey right now. Erdogan's reaction to the failed coup by jailing journalists and certain groups is non-justifiable, and the EU has been very clear in this regard. RM: After the EU-Turkey migrant deal was signed, we have seen a failed coup in Turkey, a completely disproportionate response by Erdogan, and frequent attacks in the capital. This means that the original proposal to grant Turks visa-free access to Europe and although Erdogan has threatened to scrap the migrant deal, I believe that the EU should hold its stance. Turkish membership of the EU has never been so far as it has been in the past decade. MD: The basic problem of Turkey is that it cannot be part of the EU, while at the same time toss journalists and opposition politicians into prison with no respect for their human rights. Until that is remedied, they cannot be seriously considered as candidates for EU membership. AS: It's a joke. The EU has been taking Turkey up the road for ages; the truth is that most people at the top of the EU absolutely don't want Turkey to become an EU member state. The EU absolutely shouldn't try and act as an agent for regime change and try to impose its values on other countries. Look at how that strategy had worked in Iraq and Libya and how it's working in Syria… How concerned are you about Russia's meddling in European and American politics? Should the EU loosen its sanctions on Russia if Trump goes down that route? TCC: Putin hasn't minced his words about what he thinks about the EU and about how he would welcome a Trump presidency. The US doesn't border Russia but we do, which places us in very different situations. As for Russian interference, ultimately the largest threat to the EU's existence would come from its own citizens. If we all keep in mind how the EU has provided economic and social growth over the years, then no one will be able to threaten it. RM: Despite Trump's words, there is no appetite within the EU to loosen its sanctions on Russia; indeed, his words could have had the completely opposite effect… MD: The problem is that the European Parliament often adopts resolutions with harsh language against Russia, but then the action stops there. All that serves to do is alienate Russia. If possible, the EU should sit down with Russia to discuss means of improving diplomatic relations. As for the EU project, we must keep in mind that its goal was not only free trade but also peace be- tween European countries. While the EU is often criticised for being too bureaucratic, it has made Euro- pean countries look at each other as friends and not as security prob- lems. Now that far-right parties are rising across Europe, that is an as- pect of the EU that we should start talking about more vociferously… AS: Come on, the US has been interfering in foreign affairs and foreign elections for so long. It interfered in elections in Chile and only last year found itself embroiled in controversy for having tapped Angela Merkel's personal cellphone. I agree that Russia has become too authoritarian, but for the EU to accuse it of interfering in its politics when some MEPs themselves had formed part of the Orange Revolution? What are they saying? That we can do whatever we want but Russia cannot? It's ridiculous. To accuse Russia of aiding popu- list European parties is a bit of a stretch. How exactly is it aiding them? Because Marine Le Pen took out a loan from a Russian bank? If certain sectors of a country have views that Russia agrees with, then yes, it will come out in favour of them. The European Parliament also uses strong language against Russia in some of the resolutions it adopts, but does that mean that it is interfering in Russian affairs? The problem all boils down to the fall of the Berlin Wall in the 1990s. Europe screwed it up back then – instead of admitting that it had to accept complementariness with Russia, it took advantage of the fact that Russia was on its back and profited off it. Now Russia is back on its feet and fighting back. I'm not in favour of everything that Trump says, but there's salt in some of the stuff he's saying. A US economist recently told the S&D meeting that Trump may be boor- ish, but that Hillary Clinton could have been an even worse option because she forms part of an elite establishment that would have in- creased confrontation between the US and Russia. Should citizenship be granted to children of immigrants born in Malta? TCC: All children born in Malta, no matter who their parents are, should automatically qualify for Maltese citizenship. It is the most inhumane thing possible for the government to leave children stateless. We are talking here about children who were born in Malta and who grew up in Malta. What makes them foreign? Simon Busuttil and Joseph Muscat were both MEPs. Do you intend to follow that tradition and become PN leader someday? RM: I am very happy at the European Parliament and will carry out my mandate as MEP until 2019, while at the same time do my utmost to help Simon Busuttil become Prime Minister. When my term as MEP is up in 2019, I fully intend to run again if the PN wants me to. If Simon Busuttil doesn't win the next election, then I will help him win the next one. Will you consider the PN leadership if Busuttil loses the next election and resigns? RM: I will not entertain hypotheses. Should euthanasia be introduced in Malta? MD: In principle I'm against euthanasia, but I don't want to impose my opinion on others. I recently spoke to people who gave me their points of view, including one person whose relative's health is gradually degenerating and is now starting to lose his mental capacities. A debate on whether euthanasia should be legalised shouldn't be a no-go, but sometimes in Malta, even proposing a debate on certain topics comes off as shocking. Do you think the EU should support Assad's government? AS: The red line on foreign interference should be terrorism. Admittedly there are grey areas in that definition sometimes, but there are some obvious cases, such as Al Qaeda and ISIS. Assad leads a government that has been recognized by the UN so there is already a legalistic approach to it. You can't just try and depose Assad without having a back-up plan. There is no alternative to Assad right now, so sure, keep him where he is. A full transcript of the individual interviews is published in MaltaToday.com.mt from Monday to Thursday tackle the Russian bear? Labour MEPs Afred Sant and Miriam Dalli Sant is clear about the EU's own fault in the way it deals with Russia, while Dalli is aware of the perils of alienating the Russian bear