Jean-Claude Juncker

"I was going to say he's a piece of work, but that might not translate too well. Is that all right, if I call you a 'piece of work'?"

"I don't think Spain will need any kind of external support."

"When it becomes serious, you have to lie."

"There can be no democratic choice against the European treaties, one cannot exit the euro without leaving the EU."

"Here comes the dictator."

"We feel we need a Capital Market Union, Energy Union, Economic and Monetary Union but we also think we need security union"

"Borders are the worst invention ever made by politicians."

"Thank you, have a nice day. I will now see the president of Azerbaijan, so the nice part of the day is over."

"I have a lot of understanding for people skeptical about the EU. Because there are legitimate questions to the address about the European Union, including the Commission. You have to answer that. You have to talk to the Eurosceptic people. By the way, sometimes I am myself, I am not free from Euroscepticism sometimes. But I am not on the way to fundamental opposition."

"Every fourth euro spent within the EU budget will go towards action to mitigate climate change... I am glad to see that young people are taking to the streets in Europe to raise visibility of the issue of climate change."

"We all know what to do, we just don’t know how to get re-elected after we’ve done it."

"Monetary policy is a serious issue. We should discuss this in secret, in the Eurogroup [...] I'm ready to be insulted as being insufficiently democratic, but I want to be serious [...] I am for secret, dark debates."

"We decide on something, leave it lying around and wait and see what happens. If no one kicks up a fuss, because most people don't understand what has been decided, we continue step by step until there is no turning back."

"I am determined, as is the Government, to do everything to preserve everything that we have worked for and that we believe in … by using all necessary means to fend off the hostile (bid)."

"The constitutional treaty was an easily understandable treaty. This is a simplified treaty which is very complicated.""

"I am astonished at those who are afraid of the people: one can always explain that what is in the interest of Europe is in the interests of our countries." "Britain is different. Of course there will be transfers of sovereignty. But would I be intelligent to draw the attention of public opinion to this fact?" "There is a single legal personality for the EU, the primacy of European law, a new architecture for foreign and security policy, there is an enormous extension in the fields of the EU's powers, there is Charter of Fundamental Rights."

"If it's a Yes, we will say 'on we go', and if it's a No we will say 'we continue'."

"Und deshalb wiederhole ich hier den Satz, den ich an dem Tag [4. Juni 2005] den Menschen auf dem Soldatenfriedhof in Luxemburg zurief:»Wer an Europa zweifelt, wer an Europa verzweifelt, der sollte Soldatenfriedhöfe besuchen!« Nirgendwo besser, nirgendwo eindringlicher, nirgendwo bewegender ist zu spüren, was das europäische Gegeneinander an Schlimmstem bewirken kann. Das Nicht-Zusammenleben-Wollen und das Nicht-Zusammenleben-Können haben im 20. Jahrhundert 80 Millionen Menschen das Leben gekostet. Jede Stunde des Zweiten Weltkrieges hat 1045 Tote gebracht."

"Wenn es ernst wird, muss man lügen."

"Fischer hat nicht nur Marx und Mao Tse-Tung studiert, sondern auch Brehms Tierleben, weil in Brehms Tierleben ist nachzulesen, dass große und kleine Tiere gemeinsam atmen, leben und sich bewegen müssen. Zum Beispiel weiß jeder, auch der in Brehms Tierleben weniger Kundige, dass ein Floh einen Löwen zum Wahnsinn treiben kann, ein Löwe einen Floh aber nie zum Wahnsinn treiben wird."

""Wir beschließen etwas, stellen das dann in den Raum und warten einige Zeit ab, was passiert. Wenn es dann kein großes Geschrei gibt und keine Aufstände, weil die meisten gar nicht begreifen, was da beschlossen wurde, dann machen wir weiter"