EPP LIBERTAS FORUM

On 15 July, People’s Party MEP Javier Zarzalejos took part in the opening session of the Libertas Forum, an initiative of the European People’s Party (EPP) that brought together political leaders from Europe and Latin America in Madrid to discuss the defence of freedom, democracy, the rule of law and the common challenges facing Western democracies.

The opening session featured speeches by EPP President Manfred Weber; Italy’s Deputy Prime Minister and EPP Vice-President Antonio Tajani; People’s Party President Alberto Núñez Feijóo; and Peru’s President-elect Keiko Fujimori, who participated by videoconference. This was followed by a discussion between EPP Secretary-General Dolors Montserrat and Venezuelan democratic opposition leader María Corina Machado, focusing on the defence of freedom and the restoration of democracy in Venezuela.

During this first edition of the Libertas Forum, European and Latin American leaders reaffirmed the need to strengthen cooperation between the two regions in order to defend liberal democracy, the rule of law and fundamental freedoms in the face of the rise of populism and authoritarianism—the central objective behind this new European People’s Party initiative.