VVD-leider Dilan Yeşilgöz vindt dat Europese landen met elkaar meer verantwoordelijkheid moeten nemen voor onze veiligheid en veel beter moeten opkomen voor onze vrijheid. Yeşilgöz: “Jarenlang hebben we voor onze veiligheid geleund op anderen en gedaan alsof onze vrijheid vanzelfsprekend was. Die tijd is voorbij. Dit was een naïeve houding die eerlijk gezegd de afgelopen jaren al te gemakzuchtig was en nu echt niet meer kan.”
Europa moet volgens Yeşilgöz op eigen benen staan om het Rusland van Poetin geloofwaardig te kunnen afschrikken, onze bevolkingen veilig en welvarend te houden en voor onze eigen belangen op te kunnen komen.
Yesilgöz sprak partijleiders, ministers en politiek leiders toe tijdens een congres van Liberal International, een organisatie van liberale partijen uit Europa, de VS, Afrika en Azië.
Het congres vindt plaats in een bijzondere week, waarin de Eerste en Tweede Kamer in 1945 voor het eerst sinds het begin van de oorlog weer vergaderden.
Yeşilgöz sprak haar dank uit aan wie voor onze vrijheid heeft gevochten en waarschuwde er tegelijkertijd voor dat die vrijheid tachtig jaar na de Tweede Wereldoorlog, opnieuw onder druk staat. “De oorlog in Oekraïne laat zien hoe snel vrijheid kan worden aangevallen, hoe het bestaan van een soeverein land wordt bedreigd, en hoe het leven van miljoenen mensen, plotseling in gevaar kan komen. Terwijl de krachtige Oekraïners vechten en stand houden tegen de agressor Poetin, zowel voor hun veiligheid en vrijheid als die van ons, komt de dreiging vanuit verschillende hoeken wel degelijk onze kant op.”, aldus de leider van de VVD.
Yeşilgöz waarschuwde voor het dichterbij komen van cyberdreigingen, terrorisme, extremisme en geopolitieke spanningen. “Ze tasten niet alleen onze fysieke veiligheid aan, ze ondermijnen ook onze liberale democratieën en onze manier van leven.”
De liberale leider pleit voor een slagvaardig Europa dat een geopolitiek schild vormt. En dat vereist interne discipline.
Zo roept zij op om strikt vast te houden aan de Kopenhagen-criteria voor toetreding tot de EU, om zo geen instabiele democratieën te importeren die autocraten vervolgens van binnenuit tegen ons kunnen gebruiken.
Ook onderstreept zij de noodzaak voor lidstaten om de afspraak van de NAVO-top in Den Haag na te komen en toe te groeien naar 3,5% voor defensie, aangevuld met 1,5% voor bredere, defensie-gerelateerde veiligheid. Gefinancierd op een manier die de economische slagkracht versterkt. “Onze kracht zit hem juist in onze innovatie, onze dynamiek, onze vrije markt. Met een assertief handelsbeleid, want de tijd van naïeve vrijhandel is voorbij. Met een gelijk speelveld van gelijkgestemde partners en nieuwe handelsvrienden.”
Yeşilgöz pleit ook voor een slim binnenlands beleid. “Als we onze defensie-uitgaven simpelweg zouden financieren door de belastingen voor onze ondernemers en burgers te verzwaren, worden we op de lange termijn alleen maar zwakker. Daarom moeten onze partijen, wij als liberalen het voortouw nemen. Dus ja, verhoog de uitgaven voor onze veiligheid, immers, zonder veiligheid heb je niets, maar doe dat verstandig. Doe dat door een efficiëntere, slimmere en compactere overheid. Een sterke defensie wordt betaald uit een sterke, groeiende economie. En een sterke economie wordt gedreven door ondernemers die de ruimte krijgen, niet door een overheid die hen verstikt.”
Volgens Yeşilgöz betekent het dat landen hun begrotingsregels serieus moeten nemen en moeilijke keuzes niet moeten vermijden.
“We moeten realisme koppelen aan vrijheid en begrijpen dat die vrijheid niet vanzelfsprekend is. Dat een sterke defensie en een sterke economie twee kanten van dezelfde medaille zijn. Dat de fundamenten van onze open samenleving en vrije leven elke dag opnieuw verdedigd moet worden.”
Speech Dilan Yeşilgöz
Just a stone’s throw away from here, at the Binnenhof, the location where our parliament is normally located, one can find an impressive and moving momento of the Second World War. An empty shelf in the room where the written proceedings of parliament are being preserved. The shelf is empty because the House was unable to meet during the war, under occupation. It is impressive evidence of how our democracy actually came to a standstill for a time. Looking at it, always gives me goosebumps.
This week, the 20th of November to be precise, marks a special moment in our Dutch history. Because on that day in 1945, the Senate and House of Representatives met together for the first time since the start of the war. A new shelf was filled.
In our country, newly liberated from violence and fear, but scarred by oppression, members of parliament came together to reshape our government, but above all: our democracy. In a provisionally restored Ridderzaal, the main ceremonial hall, Queen Wilhelmina delivered the formal Queen’s speech to re-open these official meetings.
The Netherlands had to rebuild itself, literally, but also as a free liberal society. That first meeting, that moment, was not only symbolic; it was proof of how resilient people are and what they can achieve when they are given, or given back the space to shape their own lives.
For me, this has extra meaning, because my own story began differently. I came to the Netherlands as a refugee, with a family history that is very different from that of most Dutch people. And yet, perhaps precisely because of that, the history of this country also became my history. Because I recognize, how in the history of all of us, people have fought for our freedom.
From day one, my family embraced the Netherlands, this country of freedom. Of space to shape your own life.
At the same time, we never forgot where we came from. It has been the basis for making the most of that freedom and space. That is why I have such great admiration for the generation that rebuilt the Netherlands after the war.
It is why liberalism is so close to my heart. Having control over your own life, seizing the opportunity to move forward, making your own choices and not being condemned to victimhood. Realizing that freedom can never be taken for granted and that you are grateful to everyone who fought for your freedom.
No matter where your personal story began.
No matter how difficult the circumstances, you are always in control, you always decide your own future, your own destiny, or at least your own way of thinking, your own mind.
Think about that for a moment. What a powerful gift that is.
That is why I am especially proud that last month during the national elections, liberalism won in the Netherlands. The movement of progress, optimism and unshakeable faith in people. And that is a good thing, because there is a lot at stake. And we, liberals, have to work harder than ever.
Because today, eighty years after the Second World War, we live in a world that is once again under pressure. The war in Ukraine shows how quickly freedom can be attacked, how the existence of a sovereign country can be threatened, and how the lives of millions of people can suddenly be put at risk.
Like probably many of you, I have been to Ukraine. I have seen the destruction. But I have also felt the unbreakable determination, in my conversation with President Zelensky, but also among the young veterans I spoke with and other Ukrainians. I have such admiration for them, and we will make sure that they know that this alley will remain an alley.
As the powerful Ukrainians fight and stand their ground against the aggressor Putin, both for their security and freedom ánd ours, the threat is indeed coming our way, from different arias.
Cyber threats, terrorism, extremism, geopolitical tensions: they are tangible, they are close.
They not only affect our physical security, they also undermine our liberal democracies and our way of life.
It is time that we, here in Europe, stand together. That we take greater responsibility for our security. And defend our freedom more vigorously. For years, we have relied on others for our security. And for years, we have taken our freedom for granted. As if our way of life were a given. Those days are over. And I say to you, thank goodness. This was a naïve attitude which, to be honest, has been all too complacent in recent years and is now truly unsustainable.
Europe must stand on its own two feet. To be able to credibly deter Putin’s Russia. To keep our populations safe and prosperous. To be able to stand up for our own interests.
The EU is no longer just our project for the internal market; it is our geopolitical shield. And that requires a decisive Europe. Because a shield is only strong if it is solid from within. That requires internal discipline.
We cannot afford to weaken the Union by stretching the Copenhagen Criteria for accession, thereby importing unstable democracies that autocrats can then use against us from within.
Only a Europe that has its internal affairs in order, can truly take responsibility for its own region. Instability in the Balkans, North Africa or the Middle East has direct consequences for us. We can no longer afford to be a pawn of other powers in those regions. A strong Europe takes its own responsibility.
That requires investment. Real, substantial, sustainable investment. That is why it is so crucial that we follow up on the agreement reached at the NATO summit in The Hague: to increase defense spending to 3.5%, supplemented by 1.5% for broader defense-related security. This is a historic and necessary step to get our armed forces in order and fill the gaps that we have allowed to develop over decades.
However, and this is crucial for us as liberals, how we pay for this is just as important as the fact that we pay. We cannot win this geopolitical competition with autocracies if we undermine our own economic strength. Our competitiveness is our sharpest weapon. Our strength lies precisely in our innovation and our free market.
That strength comes from two sides. First, an assertive trade policy. The era of naive free trade is over. With like-minded partners, with new trading friends, we demand a level playing field. If others close their markets or compete unfairly with our entrepreneurs, we as liberals must not hesitate to stand up for ourselves.
Secondly, that strength comes from smart domestic policy. If we were to simply finance our defense-spending by increasing taxes on our businesses and citizens, we would only become weaker in the long term. That is why our parties, we as liberals, must take the lead. So yes, increase spending on our security, because without security you have nothing, but do so wisely. Do so by creating a more efficient, smarter and more compact government. A strong defense is paid for by a strong, growing economy. And a strong economy is driven by entrepreneurs who are given room to maneuver, not by a government that suffocates them.
That, friends, is liberalism in action. And that brings me to my final point.
The choices before us are fundamental. There are voices calling for isolationism, wanting to build walls and turn our backs on our allies. There are others who refuse to face the reality of the threats, clinging to a naïve belief that security will come naturally as long as we engage in dialogue.
Both routes lead to nowhere and offer no answer to today’s complex reality.
Only the liberal path is viable. It is the path of responsibility. The path that combines realism with freedom. It is the path that has learned from our history.
We understand that freedom cannot be taken for granted. That our democracy was fought for, and not without reason. We understand that a strong defense and a strong economy are two sides of the same coin. We understand that an open society is not a given, but an achievement. Something that must be defended every day. And we are not only prepared to defend our ideal of freedom, but also to make the realistic choices that are necessary to achieve it.
Friends, I am optimistic. This is our moment. This is our responsibility.
Let us build together a country, a Europe and a world in which we protect the foundations on which our free life is built. The foundations that enable people to live their lives in freedom, to shape their own destinies and to move forward.
Let us work together, in our own countries and in the Europe that protects us all, to ensure that no shelf ever has to be left empty again because our democracy has been pushed aside.
Let us be united in defending our freedom.
Thank you.
