The Greek nation has to be respected. I am not in the camp of those who openly want to humiliate Greece.

Decisions can only be reached in Europe if France and Germany agree.

I have changed the focus of the work of my Commission so that we no longer concern ourselves with trivial details and concentrate on the key issues instead. By doing that, we met a large number of the legitimate demands made by the British people. The Commission really did do everything it could to create the conditions for a positive campaign.

The European family may well be anything but perfect.

In the highest government office, you have to be ready to bow out at any time, otherwise you are not a free individual anymore.

Anyone who believes that the eternal question of war and peace in Europe is no longer there risks being deeply mistaken.

With their charm and legendary sense of humor, the British directly or indirectly paved the way for a large number of European compromises.