For the full transcript of the speech, see here

"Europe’s first responsibility is to protect our citizens and prepare for the impacts of the conflict in the Middle East." - President Ursula von der Leyen On 11 March 2026, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen gave an opening speech at the European Parliament Plenary Session on the Situation in the Middle East. In her speech, President von der Leyen addressed the dire human rights situation under Ayatollah Khamenei's regime in Iran, highlighting the repression faced by Iranians seeking change. She emphasised the European Union's commitment to peace and solidarity, and discussed Europe's reduced dependency on fossil fuel imports, thanks to diversification efforts, while warning against reverting to Russian energy sources despite price shocks in gas and oil. She outlined strategies to alleviate energy costs for households, focusing on market design improvements, grid charge productivity, tax disparities and the importance of modernising the EU Emissions Trading System. She concluded with the announcement of the ‘One Europe, One Market' Roadmap for legislative measures to enhance European market competitiveness, urging collaboration across EU institutions to deliver results for citizens. For the full transcript of the speech, see here: https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/speech_26_593 Disclaimer: Comments considered in breach of our social media moderation policy may be removed. You can take a look at it here: https://europa.eu/!q4KMP8 Follow us on: -X: https://twitter.com/EU_Commission -Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/europeancommission/ -Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EuropeanCommission -LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/european-commission/ -Medium: https://medium.com/@EuropeanCommission Check our website: https://commission.europa.eu/