“I am very sorry for what happened. I have already expressed my regret to Mrs. von der Leyen and all the women. I assure you that since then I have not slept well at night and that in my head I have rewound the film of the episode dozens of times . I take my share of responsibility. We will have to avoid situations of this kind in the future. Unfortunately, the affair has contributed to concealing the substance of the meeting with President Erdogan and in this situation the Union’s ability to show unity “.
Michel looks for von der Leyen, but she doesn’t answer: the “sofa-gate” shakes the leaders of Europe
by our correspondent Alberto D’Argenio
This was stated by the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, during a meeting with a group of European newspapers, including The sun 24 hours, returning to the diplomatic incident in Ankara which saw the president of the EU Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, relegated to a sofa while her two interlocutors – the Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Michel himself – sat in the armchair.
Turkey against Draghi. In government newspapers: “Mussolini dictator”. But people on social media: “Finally someone is telling the truth”
by Marco Ansaldo
“I had a few seconds to decide which attitude to have. At the moment, my impression was that any reaction would question the lengthy diplomatic work that had prepared our visit. Also, I did not want to have towards Mrs. von der Leyen no paternalistic attitude. Having said that, I respect contrary opinions and understand the criticisms that have been leveled at me, “Miche said in response to a question about why he didn’t sit next to von der Leyen or give her his seat on the armchair.
On the Prime Minister Mario Draghi, who defined Turkish President Erdogan as a “dictator”: “I respect the views expressed by each European head of state and government. Here I want to note that a significant part of our meeting with the Turkish president was about defending democratic values and Rule of law. We have expressed our concerns. “
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