The European Parliament observes a minute’s silence for the victims of DANA in Spain

Brussels – The European Parliament observed a minute of silence this Wednesday in memory of the victims of the floods caused by DANA in the east and south of Spain, especially in the Valencian Community.

At the beginning of the session, the parliamentarians observed a minute of silence at the request of the President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, who declared that Europe “remains in shock” and “in mourning” for the people who lost their lives in the floods in Spain.

“The European Parliament stands by Spain in these difficult times,” stated the Maltese ‘popular’ in a message in Spanish, indicating that the institution will facilitate reconstruction tasks.

Metsola reiterated the Chamber’s willingness to help by maximizing the flexibility of financial instruments to mitigate the consequences of the disaster. According to her, what is urgent is to provide help to the victims, but also to improve preparedness and combat the climate crisis.

During the debate, the European Commission saw DANA as the “latest reminder” that climate urgency “is already here” and that “the safety of citizens is increasingly compromised” due to global warming.

“Extreme weather events should prompt us all to ask ourselves not only how climate change might affect future generations, but how to prepare now because the urgency is already here,” highlighted this Wednesday the European Commissioner for International Cooperation and Development, Janez Lenarcic, during a debate on DANA in the European Parliament.

The commissioner avoided references to the management of the disaster and limited himself to guaranteeing all EU aid, although that did not prevent the debate from being marked by cross-recriminations between PP and PSOE.

The Popular Party blamed the third vice president of the Government and candidate for European commissioner, Teresa Ribera, for the consequences of DANA, and demanded that the socialists withdraw her as the Spanish candidate to be part of the European Commission, while the socialists targeted the president of the Valencian Generalitat, Carlos Mazón.

In this way, national politics made the leap to the European sphere, as the PP also used the management of DANA to justify the blockade to the confirmation of Ribera as vice president of the Commission while Brussels defends that the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, maintains her confidence in her.