The problem is: When two governments or institutions in Europe hold differing opinions, it is immediately a crisis.

I said in my inaugural address that I am not the Council's secretary, nor am I the Parliament's lackey. That can sometimes lead to conflicts, which are defused through dialogue.

I am for it - not to make a threat, but to make clear that decisions that have been made are applicable law, even if you have voted against it. At issue here is European solidarity, which cannot be a one-way street. The traffic has to move in both directions.

From the very beginning Europe has been not only a success story but also a story of success achieved by learning.

Yesterday's shining heroes of Brexit have become the sorrowful heroes of today.

But anyone who believes that the eternal issue of war and peace in Europe has been permanently laid to rest could be making a monumental error. The demons haven't been banished; they are merely sleeping, as the wars in Bosnia and Kosovo have shown us.

Greece is not a country that can be humiliated. It is a matter of finding an intersection between the reasonable elements of both sides [EU and Greece] which has to be done.