- 6 weeks ago
Putin threatens Europe with war if it wants one - MEPs react on The Ring
"If you project power, Russia is not going to attack you" - MEPs Cristian Terheș (ECR) and Cynthia Ní Mhurchú (Renew Europe) discuss the security of Europe on The Ring.
READ MORE : http://www.euronews.com/2025/12/08/putin-threatens-europe-with-war-if-it-wants-one-meps-react-on-the-ring
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"If you project power, Russia is not going to attack you" - MEPs Cristian Terheș (ECR) and Cynthia Ní Mhurchú (Renew Europe) discuss the security of Europe on The Ring.
READ MORE : http://www.euronews.com/2025/12/08/putin-threatens-europe-with-war-if-it-wants-one-meps-react-on-the-ring
Subscribe to our channel. Euronews is available on Dailymotion in 12 languages
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NewsTranscript
00:00Hello there and welcome to The Ring, Euronews' brand new debating show broadcasting from the
00:14European Parliament here in Brussels. Once a week, two elected members of the European Parliament
00:20go face to face on some of the most pressing issues of our time. This week, we're discussing
00:26the EU's role in peace talks to end the war in Ukraine and we're asking if we need to
00:31militarize European societies. Before we meet our guests, let's just get you up to speed.
00:39So far, Ukraine and Europe have remarkably been sidelined in negotiations aimed at ending
00:44the war with Russia. US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff met Russian President Vladimir Putin
00:50to push a US-sponsored peace deal. Initially concocted with the Kremlin, the plan was amended
00:55with the European and Ukrainian inputs after concerns emerged that Kiev would be pressured
01:01into unacceptable concessions. Yet Europe is having a hard time finding a seat at the negotiation
01:06table. French President Emmanuel Macron welcomed Volodymyr Zelensky at the Élysée Palace and
01:12stressed that no agreement would materialize without European participation. Voices are
01:17also rising in Brussels for Europe to have its own plan to ensure a lasting peace in Ukraine
01:22and deter Moscow from future military action. Only the 27 can't agree on how to proceed.
01:29So what next for the EU? And should the 27 remain a soft power or transition to a military
01:39might? The questions we'll be putting to our contenders. Let's meet them.
01:44Cynthia Newarku, Irish MEP for the Liberal Renew Group. A former journalist and lawyer, she's a devoted
01:51pro-European who believes in dialogue and negotiation under the right circumstances. Any credible peace
01:57plan must involve Ukraine, the EU, the United States and Russia and it cannot be imposed on Ukraine or
02:04come at the expense of its sovereignty, territorial integrity or democratic future, she said.
02:10Christian Terhes, Romanian MEP for the European Conservatives and Reformists Group.
02:15Former candidate for the country's presidency, a defender of national sovereignty, he has dismissed the
02:21guarantees given by the US, Great Britain, Germany and Russia to Ukraine in order to give up its
02:26nuclear arsenal in 1994. Now he warns against the acceptance of a peace agreement with Russia
02:32at any cost. In the natural tendency, man wants peace immediately, but history shows us the price
02:39of hasty decisions, he said.
02:42Cynthia Newarku and Christian Teresh, welcome to the ring.
02:47Thank you so much for having us.
02:49Hi Christian.
02:50Hi Cynthia.
02:51Great to have you with us. Well look, ladies first perhaps, we'll kick off with Cynthia Newarku.
02:54Why is the European Union not at the driving seat in the talks to end the war in Ukraine,
02:59but always reacting?
03:00No, the EU is at the driving seat, but the driving seat is shared and should be shared
03:06between the nations and the countries that have a vested interest.
03:11Obviously, we're in a particular space whereby America has withdrawn somewhat from its previous
03:19historical support through NATO and so forth.
03:21So we are in a new geopolitical atmosphere, as we all know, and therefore we are in the
03:27driving seat very much, but we can't take over in the driving seat. We also need our
03:31partners. So Russia is involved with the United States and obviously we have Europe, but most
03:36importantly, we have President Zelenskyy and Ukraine. And in your clip, you indicated that
03:41the coalition of the willing, indeed, Zelenskyy was welcome to the Palace Elysee, but he was
03:45also welcomed to my country and my parliament in the Dáil. And I can tell you that Europe stands
03:51firm, very firm with Ukraine, because I think my friend will agree with me, if we don't stand in
03:57Europe with Ukraine, who is next? Probably your country, Romania.
04:01But messages of support in the New York who are not enough.
04:03We have Kaya Callas. She's the EU foreign affairs chief, but she's nowhere to be seen in any of those images.
04:07Well, I think Europe, European Union right now has to take the lead in this fight, because at the end of the day,
04:14it's not in the U.S. main interest to resolve the situation in Ukraine, but it's in our own interest in European
04:21Union, and especially on countries that are on the eastern flank of NATO. As Cynthia rightfully mentioned,
04:27we are very concerned in Eastern Europe, because if Ukraine collapses, who is next?
04:33It's someone from the Baltic region, it's Romania. Who's next?
04:36Messages of support is another thing, but has the EU done enough?
04:39I'm sorry, Maeve, I mean, I watched the news overnight. Putin has withdrawn from the peace talks.
04:45Putin does not want peace. Russia does not want peace. Europe has bent over backwards in their very
04:51professional, organized way, bearing in mind we have 27 member states, and has really negotiated very
04:56skillfully and very hard. And I don't really accept any criticism of Kaya Callas. She may not be seen in
05:02pictures, but I'm not depending on her being seen in pictures. I'm depending on her and her team
05:06negotiating hard. And they have been doing that. But bear in mind, they didn't withdraw.
05:11Putin has withdrawn. He's no interest in peace.
05:13Why did the EU get sidelined by the Trump 28-point peace plan?
05:16That's very, very simple. And I mean, again, I'm sure Christian will agree. President Trump has set up
05:22these so-called collaborative talks, which are not collaborative in any way, because the United States
05:27did not come as the arbitrator, as the mediator, with its proposed plan drawn from both sides.
05:34He came with a Russian plan.
05:36And we saw Steve Whitcoff. He's been to Moscow around six times, but never visited Kyiv.
05:41As you can see right now, we talk too much about what the U.S. does or what the U.S. wants. The
05:45question is what the EU does.
05:47Exactly.
05:47And when you talk to Russia, historically speaking, you have to negotiate with Russia
05:51from a position of power, because the only language that the Russian would listen to
05:57is the language of power. We talk too much. We don't act enough. Not only that we don't
06:02act enough, we don't act strong. I give an example. Nord Stream 2, for example. When Trump
06:06was elected in 2016, he sanctioned the companies that were built in Nord Stream 2. When Biden was
06:12elected in 2020, he lifted the sanctions. That's how Nord Stream 2 was finalized. Then we saw
06:16what happened in 2022. For so many years, there were so many talks, even here in the
06:20European Parliament. But behind the scenes, many EU countries, you know, still conducted
06:24business with Russia. So we paid for this work.
06:28Yeah, I totally agree with Christian when he says about, you know, not acting up quickly
06:32enough. Because if we look back at the initial invasion of Putin into Ukraine, that's when
06:36Europe should have acted more comprehensively, more firmly. And they didn't. And we really are
06:41paying the price of that now. But I don't accept the premise that Europe is in some way
06:46way too weak or way too ineffective. I do believe that progress will be made. Look at
06:51how Trump is stymied. Every time he says there's a deadline, Maeve, every time he says it's a
06:56deadline, that deadline is passed and we move to a next phase. He wants a quick fix. He
07:01won't learn the lesson, Trump, that we can't get a quick fix when he's asking Ukraine to
07:05give up its sovereignty. And then he's going to ask Romania to give up their sovereignty and
07:09Poland. And where I was standing in Estonia some weeks ago, looking across at the Russian
07:15border and realizing how threatened all these countries on the eastern flank. But you know
07:19what? It's only a hair's breadth away from Ireland.
07:21And you say, of course, the Kremlin only understands the language of power. How would you react to
07:27Vladimir Putin's comments this week when he said he's ready for a war with Europe?
07:30I will not react with words. I will react with actions. We need to build up our defense. But on
07:35top of that, we need to set ourselves the proper mindset in dealing with Russia. And I paraphrase
07:42what the former Taliban leader told many U.S. generals when they had a meeting. The general,
07:46the U.S. general said, well, we got to finish this fast, fast, fast. And the Taliban says,
07:50you know, what is the difference between you and us? What? You have the watch. We have the time.
07:55So the Russians right now are using exactly the same strategy. Cynthia was right when she mentioned
08:02that Trump is always, you know, coming up with these deadlines, you know, from one day to another.
08:06You cannot have, in such a complicated situation, a peace deal from one day to another. In order to
08:12do that, you need to take, you know, enough time to do it. But on top of that, you need to have
08:17a strong defense behind your words. So for many decades, the European Union expected that if
08:23something happens, U.S. is there to defend us. Yes. U.S. can help. But U.S. apparently right now
08:29cannot drive this anymore. But Christian, not only do we need to stand up and smell the coffee with
08:34regards to the mindset of Putin, which I think Europe did a long time ago when they failed to
08:38interact and investigate what was going on in the late, in the early 2000s, I should say, when Russia
08:44invaded first, Donbass, et cetera. But unfortunately, we have the mindset of Trump thrown in for good
08:51measure. And of course, we realize that all the power, all the might, all the money, which
08:55Ukraine has been so dependent on, as well as the huge investment from Russia, it's a very
08:59delicate balance. So, Sari, you talk about mindset. There still is a wonderful aspect of
09:05politics called diplomacy. But of course, Trump doesn't have that in his dictionary or his
09:09lexicon. It doesn't exist. And so, therefore, Kaya Callas and the negotiating team have to
09:14negotiate in a completely different way. It has to be deferential. It has to be sycophantic.
09:20And it has to allow the bully in the room to triumph.
09:23Kaya is coming from one of the Baltic countries.
09:25Exactly.
09:26She had very strong statements, which is very important. But it's important also, she even
09:30mentioned in some of her speeches, to understand the lesson of history. The first country that
09:35was attacked by Russia in the 21st century was Georgia in 2008. Because Georgia, in April
09:41of 2008, was not accepted in NATO because two NATO countries vetoed their accession. So, what
09:47happened after the war in Georgia in August 2008? Russia occupied South Ossetia and Akhazia.
09:53But in 2009, a new U.S. president took office, Obama. The first thing that he did once he took
09:59office was to resume the relationship with Russia. Russia came with a precondition. That said,
10:05and I quote, you need to forget everything that happened in 2009, we start from scratch. Well,
10:10they do not start from scratch. They keep everything that they got so far. And from this point on,
10:15they want to negotiate.
10:16But back to Europeans, our viewers watching here today, Cynthia Newarko, is it time to
10:20militarize our societies? Is it time for your voters, your children to start learning how
10:24to fight?
10:24I'll tell you what, it's time for now. It's time to realize that the cooperative military
10:30organizations that we have in relation to procurement, in relation to training, in relation
10:36to sharing intelligence, that needs to be ramped up. And yes, Europe has already reacted to the fact
10:42in the last couple of months that the budget of each country, we have to commit a certain percentage.
10:48Should we have voluntary military subscription for all Europeans?
10:50Yes. And we need to understand that the biggest security guarantees that any country has,
10:56it's its own military. No foreigner, no stranger is going to come and die for your country. And we
11:01politicians, elected officials, we need to make this point very clear. Nobody is going to come and die
11:07for your country. If you, whomever you are in what elected office you are, you need to make this clear
11:13to your people. So you have to have, you have to build up your country to be resilient to
11:17any kind of interference from outside, either military interference, you know, electoral
11:22interference, any kind of malign interference. So building up your military is, is one step,
11:28but not the only step because you need to, we need to defend, for example, and make sure that we, we
11:32safeguard our, uh, correctness of the electoral process, for example. But we also need negotiation,
11:37Maeve, and we need diplomacy. So we need both. Those two elements, which Trump doesn't like.
11:42Let me stop you there because it is now to take time to take the gloves off here.
11:47That means Cynthia and Christian, you can challenge each other directly, just like you do
11:53in the hemicycle. Cynthia, you can kick off with your very first question for Christian.
11:57Certainly. Are you worried at the statement of Putin overnight, which stated,
12:03if Europe want war, we are ready for war. And how do you think Europe should react to that statement?
12:11I have to say that Putin said it from 2007, fall of 2007, in Lisbon, during a summit between EU and
12:19Russia. And he said something, and I paraphrase him, if the foreign, if the international community is
12:25going to recognize the independence of Kosovo, all the frozen conflicts from Eastern Europe are going to
12:29melt. And he nominated it. So that was fall of 2007. We saw what happened in 2008. We saw then what
12:38happened in 2014 and what happened in 2022. He's tricking us with words. Russia was preparing for
12:46this war, not from today or from like 2014. Russia was preparing for this war a few years
12:53after Putin to power.
12:54So what should the reaction be, Cynthia? Well, we need to react. You need to prepare yourself for war.
12:59You need to, not for war, not to attack someone, but to be able to defend yourself.
13:03Because is that not scaremongering? Are our viewers not sitting at home fretting?
13:06I'm not scaring anybody. I'm realistic. Look at what Churchill said, for example,
13:11during the Second World War. It's exactly the kind of leadership that we need and we are missing right
13:16now. I think we need to have a nuanced, mature conversation with our voters, whether we're on the
13:21western periphery in Ireland or we're in Estonia and we're right up against it, the country of
13:26Kayakalas. We need to have a mature conversation that about the militarization and the investment
13:32in militarization. No, it doesn't mean a united European army, but it does mean massive cooperation,
13:39massive investment. But can we afford it? I mean, with... We will have to afford it,
13:43even though there are competing interests, whether it's farmers, which are very dear to my heart,
13:48whether it's businesses, whether it's education, Erasmus. But right now, at this point in time,
13:53we are under threat. This is the closest we've been to the Cold War that I can remember.
13:58Christian, your question now for Cynthia?
14:00You were mentioning about the price. I have to say that it's cheaper to invest in your own defense
14:05than to support the war. And we see the situation in Ukraine. It's way cheaper.
14:08Christian, your opportunity now to address a question to Cynthia.
14:11Yes, considering the... I hope it's a simple one.
14:13Well, we'll see. So do you think you could have done more to help Ukraine? And if so, what?
14:20Absolutely not. I don't believe they could have done more. I think the amount of money that Europe
14:26has put in more than the United States and the amount of talks, time given to talks, preparation
14:34given for talks and leading out, they couldn't have done any more. I think they have ramped up and reacted
14:39with regards to the commitment of the member states to their military spend, to their defense
14:44spend. I don't think we're 27 member states who have very different constitutional setups and
14:50structures. I don't see how Europe could have done more. Are we perfect? Of course not. I'm not
14:55suggesting that. But sorry, this is in real time, Maeve. But certainly not enough has been done,
14:59Cynthia, if we're entering the fourth winter of war. Ursula van der Leyen, and I wouldn't be the biggest fan
15:05of Ursula van der Leyen or President van der Leyen. But Ursula van der Leyen has reacted as swiftly as
15:10she can to a devastating new geopolitical situation that Christian has referred to, which is no support
15:16anymore from Europe. Stand on your own two feet. Get on with it. Would you agree with Cynthia?
15:21Up to a point, yes. But I think you could have done more sooner because now we have the 19th package of
15:28sanctions. You know, many of these sanctions could have been done right at the beginning of the
15:32invasion of Ukraine by Russia. On top of that, we could have, you know, cut their finances. You know,
15:38even right now, for example, the transportation corridors, for example, from Central Asia and China,
15:44all the goods that are coming to Europe, they are still coming through Russia, which is absurd.
15:48So on one side, you're claiming rightfully so that Russia declared war to Europe. On the other side,
15:53you do business with them. It doesn't make any sense. This is this is what I'm calling on public
15:59officials, you know, to be correct and to be straightforward with the population, because
16:03it's the only way to to be able to properly defend from this kind of attacks. And briefly,
16:09what leverage do the Europeans have over President Trump, for example, who seems to trust the Russians
16:13more than he does the EU? I think the leverage that we have over the United States is to show
16:18the United States that we have heard the message loud and proud for President Trump. We are standing on
16:23our own two feet and we do have a plan. But Christian is right. There can be certainly a
16:28ramping up, particularly in relation to, excuse me, the financial sanctions, a ramp up of that,
16:34instead of having so many talks about talks. Now, bearing in mind that countries, some countries
16:39in Europe are more adversely affected if we do impose the trading sanctions. So we have to be
16:44careful that we don't create another crisis. But you're quite right. Perhaps more could be done in
16:48that regard. But with regards to America, I think Christian is right. We have to stand up with a
16:53powerful voice. Kaia Callas is doing that. She's doing it in a feminine way, which obviously juxtaposes
16:59against President Trump, who's calling journalist Miss Piggy on Air Force One. But at the same time,
17:04I would prefer to have her leadership rather than the likes of what we're seeing across the pond.
17:09Cynthia Orca, a big fan there of Kaia Callas. Look, we've heard some points of view from our MEPs
17:14here. And now I would like to bring in another voice. And I'd like to bring in the voice of Ben
17:23Hodges, the former commanding general of the US Army Europe, speaking to me earlier here on Euronews.
17:29He said the US really sees Europe as inconsequential, except maybe for some business purposes. Europe,
17:35he said, is slowly waking to the realization that they cannot count on the US to be a fair
17:41interlocutor here. Christian, are we inconsequential?
17:45Up to a point, yes. He said we're fourth on the list of the priorities of the Americans.
17:50Yes, because for so many years, we allowed ourselves to be fourth on their list.
17:56Trump said when he was asked recently or a few months ago, what is his position on Ukraine and
18:01how the US is going to react to what is happening there? He said, you know, there are two oceans between
18:05US and Russia, which geographically is correct. There are two oceans, Pacific and the Atlantic Ocean.
18:11It should be us, the Europeans, the driving force of the peace deal in Ukraine. And we are not right
18:17now because we talk too much and we act soft. Russia, this is the important... Look, every time when
18:24Putin speaks, he makes reference to certain historical events. Russia developed a technique to twist
18:31historical events to their favor. And they use that in a way to shape the narrative and to influence
18:38the population. We come with this sometimes tough talks, but with soft actions, and we speak and we
18:46talk publicly about immediate consequences. Let's do something right now. They have the time to wait
18:52and then when they make any reference to history, they twist what happened in the past. Can I just say,
18:57Trump has forgotten that he's got a major trading block and he's got major economic ties to Europe.
19:03And he's kind of forgotten about that because he's speed dating China and he's speed dating
19:08Putin. But he's after finding out now, he's after sending Jared Kushner, his son-in-law,
19:13and he's after sending Steve Widkoff and so forth. And they're after being given, as we say in Ireland,
19:17the bums rush, the shut door. They're gone now. And their proposals about more business ties
19:23between America and Russia have come to zero. Zero. And now Trump is going to think,
19:28we do have an awful lot of dependency in terms of our business benefits from Europe.
19:34And interesting this week as well, NATO foreign ministers gathered in Brussels without
19:38the US Secretary of State Marco Rubio around the table. A very unusual move. But on that point,
19:42we can close this conversation to take a very short break here on The Ring. But do stay with us
19:47because we'll be back very soon with some more political punch from the heart of the European
19:51Parliament.
20:01Welcome back to The Ring, Euronews's weekly debating show broadcasting from the European Parliament here
20:08in Brussels. I'm joined by the MEP's Cynthia Niwerecu from Renew Europe and Christian Tersh from the
20:13European Conservatives and Reformists. And the idea here is to bring the European Parliament
20:17debates to your very couch. So, what about you? How do you feel about the war in Ukraine?
20:23Has the EU done enough? And would you be willing to fight if Russia invaded your country or another
20:29EU member state? Well, Euronews's reporters took to the streets of Athens, Madrid, Bucharest and Warsaw to
20:35find us. Take a look.
20:36For the rest of my family, I don't want to go anywhere, I don't want to leave my family here,
20:41I don't want to be able to help me in a different way.
20:44I think we should fight as a country, if we're opposed to this, because as a unit,
20:51I would definitely not take a fight.
20:53I always fight for my country, of course. I think it's a honor to die for my country,
20:59so, of course, I die for my country, it's a great honor.
21:02It's a shame that we have to be thinking about this type of training.
21:06In Europe, we have lived, in quotes, very well, and maybe now we have to give the
21:11back of the door, but I think that before we, before we, before we, before our young people,
21:14that we have already had an age.
21:16Me, yes. Even this year, I'm planning to be a reservation, but if there was a 1.000,
21:21I would call it.
21:23For Greece, yes. I don't want to risk my life for a third country.
21:28Interesting, right? To see how many people said they would actually be happy to die for their
21:32country question.
21:33But we don't get to that point where somebody has to physically die. War is the last resort.
21:38When you go to war, you know, that's the, that's the collapse of diplomacy.
21:42So, in order to prevent a war, you need to prepare for war. Everybody talks right now,
21:47and I understand the reason why, and they are afraid or, you know, in support of going to war.
21:52But that's the last resort. We need to prepare, you know, with all these things before that.
21:56And I'm telling you, if you're strong and you project power, Russia is not going to attack you.
22:01Russia is like a bear. A bear is going to attack a weak animal.
22:05What is this on people's minds, do you think, Cynthia Newarku? In Ireland, for example,
22:08a country that's far away from...
22:09I deal with Ireland, and Ireland wasn't boxpot. But what that shows is the difference, the diversity.
22:15But we have to have inclusivity. For me, Europe is full of diversity, inclusivity,
22:19and liberal values. That might be different for Christian's party. But having set that aside,
22:24it shows that we as elected representatives in Europe need to speak to our voters in a very
22:30reasonable, informative, intelligent way about the fact that militarisation doesn't mean a European
22:37army. It doesn't mean the destruction of neutrality in Ireland. It doesn't mean that youngsters in
22:41Ireland are going to be signed up for because Britain. It means different things to different
22:44countries. But there's got to be a unity amongst Europe in relation to the protection of Europe
22:51and fortress Europe. But it doesn't mean capital F. So what answers, Cynthia, would you have gotten
22:56if you went out to speak to your voters about that topic? Oh, I think the answer in Ireland would be
23:00that people are very, very afraid of a militarisation that destroys our neutrality,
23:06attacks it in any way, because that is held very dearly. And of course, it's in our constitution.
23:11So it's different for each country. It's very easy to be critical of the EU in terms of its
23:16negotiating skills and its sanctions and so forth. But we have a job to do as well. It's not all about
23:21the higher echelons of Europe leading out. So has Mestin been wrong from Brussels then?
23:25They haven't got it right, this idea of rearming Europe? Well, rearming Europe, it's a good project
23:30and we fully support it. But we need to go back to the narrative. He who friends the argument wins the debate.
23:35The whole debate right now, both in Brussels and in D.C., it's about let's have a peace.
23:40The narrative in Moscow is let's win. So we don't talk anymore in Europe nor in D.C. about winning a war
23:49that we didn't have started. We were attacked. We didn't.
23:51We always talk about let's have peace. So Putin knows that.
23:54And Christian and I at the break discussed Putin wants more. He wants to grab. The conversation in Russia
24:01is about grabbing more. Exactly. Because if you give land in exchange for peace,
24:05tomorrow you'll have another war so they can take more land for pretended peace. I was in an official
24:11delegation in Latvia and I could see into Russia. The first billboard in Russia, once you pass the
24:18checking point, it's victory. So their mindset, since their young age, kids in Russia are educated
24:25to win this war against the West. This is not a war that started in 2014 or in 2008. It started way
24:31earlier than that. If we don't change our mindset to understand that we have on the other side,
24:36it's not even the other side of the table because they're not at the table. The other side of the
24:40battlefield pretty much, an opponent that really wants to wipe you out, you will not be able to win
24:45this war. So I would use exactly the same narrative as Ronald Reagan used to say when he was asked,
24:50how do you think the Cold War is going to end? Very simple. We win, they lose. And on that point,
24:55we can bring this segment to an end and move on to our fifth and final round.
25:03Our guest MEPs are only allowed to answer my question with a yes and no answer. Is that doable,
25:08Christian? Yes. Bring it on. Should Ukraine join the European Union? Yes. Yes. Should they be fast
25:16tracked into the European Union? Yes. Yes. Should Ukraine be allowed to join NATO?
25:24That is still on the... That's a very... That's not a binary, yes or no. Christian? Yes. What about
25:30peacekeepers? Should we be sending EU peacekeepers to Ukraine? Christian? We should send more weapons
25:34to Ukraine. And peacekeepers? When the time comes, yes. We should indeed, absolutely. And I would be
25:39absolutely delighted if our Irish peacekeeping forces could go to Ukraine. They have a wonderful history. Should the
25:44EU have an army? Yes. Yes or no? But it already has a national army. We need to make sure that they
25:50work together and fight for the same cause. Should the EU have a European army with the European flag?
25:56If I understand it in the way you're putting the question, no, I don't believe in that. Should we use
26:01frozen Russian acids to fund Ukraine? Most definitely. Yes. Should we block then the Belgian
26:07veto for this? Well, we need to talk more inside of the EU to make sure that they understand the game
26:13that is played here. Yes, to his answer. I agree with his answer. It's nuanced. And if the war did
26:19end and Russia did come around, should we lift the sanctions against Russia, Cynthia? Yes, I believe
26:26in the spirit of finality of the war. But of course, Putin doesn't believe in finality. He just wants more.
26:33He wants to make the Russian empire great again or better than it is now. Christian?
26:38We need to make sure that Russia loses this war. The sanctions should be kept in place until they
26:46fully pay Ukraine for the damage that they've done. Have you agreed with each other? I think
26:50quite a lot, right? Well, this is a topic that despite our ideological differences, you know,
26:54this is a topic that unites us. And I know this show is more about fighting and stuff. Sometimes
27:02politicians from different political groups will need to understand that there are issues that exceed
27:07their political differences. And this is one. I hope this programme renews the viewers' interest
27:14and support for the European project. We certainly have shown our viewers, I believe, a glimpse of
27:18the European hemicycle where sometimes MEPs disagree and sometimes, in fact, they agree. Cynthia
27:24Murakou and Christian Teres, thank you so much for being our guests on The Ring. Thanks, Maeve.
27:28Thank you. And thank you so much for watching. If you have any views on anything you've heard today,
27:33please get in touch. The Ring at Euronews.com. That is our email address. We'll see you very soon here on Euronews.
27:49you
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