The four-way debate that took place tonight on RTP pitted Marta Temido (PS), Sebastião Bugalho (AD), António Tânger Corrêa (Chega) and João Oliveira (PCP) against each other and was also marked by disagreements over the war in Ukraine and recent statements by the Chief of Staff of the Navy, Gouveia e Melo. When the moderator, journalist Carlos Daniel, confronted Marta Temido with statements by the President of the European Commission and asked her if she agreed with the idea that this election for the European Parliament was a battle between democratic forces and those close to Putin, the PS's lead candidate considered that Ursula von der Leyen "does not know which side she will be on in relation to this battle" since she admits political partnerships with far-right political forces. "This worries us immensely," she said, considering that it is necessary, without being dramatic, to tell people what is at stake in this election. The lead candidate of the AD contested the statement by the socialist opponent, with Marta Temido citing a news story that said that Ursula von der Leyen "opens the door to the far-right" and Bugalho responding that "this does not mean that she is on Putin's side". "Marta Temido, either you are expressing yourself badly or you did not understand what is in that news. Von der Leyen opens the door to conservatives and reformists, but we cannot amalgamate the Identity and Democracy group with the group of conservatives and reformists", countered Bugalho. At this stage of the debate, the Chega candidate considered that it is wrong to characterise his party as far-right and that this political force "does not identify with outdated ideologies that are closer to the Communist Party". "Chega is a conservative party and is not in favour of Mr. Putin at all, on the contrary", he said. Regarding a possible change of Chega's group in Europe, Tânger Corrêa referred everything to after the results of the European elections, adding that "at that time there could be a negotiation to increase the support base of the conservative area in which Chega" will be inserted in the future. Asked whether he considers the possibility that the Identity and Democracy and Conservative and Reformist groups will be together in the next European Parliament, the Chega candidate replied: "I do not exclude, which does not mean that I consider". For the PCP, João Oliveira criticised "the healthy coexistence of the European Union with the far-right" because, "apart from some wars of rosemary and marjoram", the far-right "does not question militarism or neoliberalism". "The European Union is not a police force for democracy, nor is Ms. Von der Leyen a good police officer", he said. Another moment that marked a heated exchange of arguments between Temido and Bugalho was when the PS candidate stated that "Europe is under attack", not only because of the war, but also "to its essential values and to a vision of solidarity that is crumbling". "It is not traditional right-wing projects that coexist well with the far-right because they are more or less palatable that lead us to solve these problems", she accused. In response, the AD candidate agreed that "the extremes threaten the rule of law and democracy", but refused to "accept moral lessons, of collusion and complacency with the far-right on the part of the PS". "The socialists in Europe and the right-wing group in the EP voted together in 823 votes", he said. The proposals of the AD and PS on housing generated one of the most tense moments of the debate, with accusations of untruth or unpreparedness being traded. In the midst of this exchange of arguments, the PCP candidate considered it "sterile for the PS and PSD to be discussing votes" because when they reach the European Parliament "they vote in the same way". Gouveia e Melo's phrase - "if Europe is attacked and if NATO demands it, we will die to defend Europe" - also deserved the positioning of the candidates for the European elections on 9th June. Bugalho defended that "statements about the future of the lives of young Portuguese people" should be made by "elected democrats", while Temido called for "great caution" about statements regarding a possible sending of troops. Tânger Corrêa considered that this was "yet another declaration of intentions", especially because Portugal has "no one to send anywhere" due to the disinvestment in the Armed Forces, with João Oliveira considering that these are "worrying statements and even more serious" if they are combined with those of other senior European leaders. Also Read: On the "momentum" of polls and "moral lessons", housing made debate tremble (Portuguese version)