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Europe Today: pace in Ucraina e Mercosur i temi caldi nell'Ue
Il nuovo programma mattutino di Euronews, Europe Today, alle 8 del mattino, ora di Bruxelles. In soli 15 minuti, vi riassume le principali notizie del giorno
ALTRE INFORMAZIONI : http://it.euronews.com/2025/12/16/europe-today-pace-in-ucraina-e-mercosur-i-temi-caldi-nellue
Abbonati, euronews è disponibile in 12 lingue.
Il nuovo programma mattutino di Euronews, Europe Today, alle 8 del mattino, ora di Bruxelles. In soli 15 minuti, vi riassume le principali notizie del giorno
ALTRE INFORMAZIONI : http://it.euronews.com/2025/12/16/europe-today-pace-in-ucraina-e-mercosur-i-temi-caldi-nellue
Abbonati, euronews è disponibile in 12 lingue.
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00:00Good morning, it is Tuesday the 16th of December. I'm Maeve McMahon and this is Europe Today,
00:21your news' daily live fix of European news and analysis. Coming up today, a real chance for
00:28peace. European leaders at Key Talks in Berlin have declared they made significant progress
00:34on ending the war in Ukraine, but insisted that nothing is agreed until everything is
00:40agreed. In a huddle between American envoys and EU leaders, including the European Commission
00:45President Ursula von der Leyen, Europeans said they stand ready to lead peacekeeping force
00:51in Ukraine. To get up to speed, let's turn straight to our Ukraine correspondent, Sasha
00:55Vakilina, who joins me here in the studio. Good morning, Sasha Vakilina. Good to have
00:59you with us. How significant is this announcement? What is your reading of the Berlin Talks?
01:03It is the first time when we hear from the European leaders on paper the real commitments
01:07from the European countries, not only to Ukraine, but also to the United States, following Donald
01:11Trump's calls for the Europeans to take more of responsibility when it comes to ending Russia's
01:16war against Ukraine. The host of the meeting, German Chancellor, said that this is the first
01:21time since the war began, a ceasefire now seems possible. We want to move along the path to peace
01:26together with the Ukrainians, our European partners and the United States. This is a real change of
01:33tone there, Maven. This is indeed probably the first time when we hear this commitment and this optimism
01:38as well from the European leaders about what's coming next. Now, let's take a closer look at some
01:44of those commitments. This is the multinational force inside Ukraine. Important to clarify here,
01:49this is about the willing countries from Europe, but also the force inside Ukraine, far from the
01:55front lines. Mechanism to monitor and verify ceasefire, legally binding assistance for future attacks,
02:01something that Kyiv insisted upon to make sure that Russia cannot attack again, and EU accession.
02:07Of course, what Kyiv has been trying to do for a long while now, and trying to overcome some of
02:12those vetoes that are blocking its European aspirations at this stage. Indeed. But what would Ukraine need
02:17to do to concede in return? There are quite a few points that are still remaining there,
02:23and Volodyma Zelenskyy spoke about some of them saying that Ukraine managed to amend the plan in some
02:29sense and the rest will stay for further negotiations. Let's take a listen.
02:32Some things are, in my view, destructive, and will certainly not help us. It is important that I
02:45don't see them today in the new edits of the documents. To me, this is important,
02:54because dignity is important. The topic of concessions is not relevant anymore.
03:00He also said that he has the feeling that the US side and the US delegation heard Ukraine and heard
03:07Ukraine's position, of course, and the sticking point of the territorial concessions. This is very
03:12important. Zelenskyy said that Ukraine will not accept any sort of Russian control over Donbas, but it is
03:17believed that this point will remain for the very end of any negotiations. And this is something that will be
03:21discussed directly between Russia and Ukraine, Maeve.
03:26Okay, we'll stay tuned for the, of course, reactions from the Kremlin. But Sasha Vakilina,
03:30thank you so much for that update. And now to dive more into the politics and diplomacy
03:36behind the Berlin gathering, we can actually cross over now to the German capital,
03:39where our correspondent Laura Fleischmann is standing by for us. Good morning, Laura,
03:43great to have you with us. Just tell us, how did the German Chancellor,
03:46Maherz actually managed to get the Americans to Berlin?
03:52Friedrich Maherz actually has a great connection with the US administration. He is seen as a
03:56transatlantic politician. And one of the first things he did when he came into office as chancellor
04:02of Germany was actually to visit Donald Trump in Washington DC. They had a great talk in the
04:06White House in front of the press and formed a great connection. Trump afterwards even called
04:11Maherz's friend. So they do keep close contact. And it was no surprise that the Americans actually
04:16came when Maherz asked them to. And is Friedrich Maherz now seen as one of the strongest politicians
04:21in the EU perhaps for this? If he is not seen as one of the strongest politicians yet, he could be
04:29seen as one of the strongest with the summit, if there is perhaps a Christmas armistice coming out
04:33of it as a result. But the fact that the summit was held in Berlin already shows how influential
04:38Friedrich Maherz actually is. It was discussed to have the summit in Paris as a German newspaper
04:43reports, but the location was changed to Berlin, perhaps because of Maherz's great connection with
04:48the US administration. And Maherz is seen as an Außenkanzler in Germany, which translates to
04:53foreign chancellor because of his great focus on foreign diplomacy and international politics.
04:58Okay, Laura Fleischmann, our Berlin correspondent, thank you so much for that update.
05:03But now coming up, we'll be speaking to Thomas Weitz, the Austrian ecological farmer and member of
05:08of the European Parliament for the European Green Party. Thomas Weitz is in Strasbourg this week,
05:14where members of the European Parliament are meeting. On their agenda, a potential showdown
05:18on the EU's trade deal with the South American bloc Mercosur. Ursula von der Leyen was planning to head
05:24to Brazil this weekend to sign off on that trade deal that is three decades in the making. European
05:29industries see it as a Christmas gift they've all been dreaming of, but farmers are not convinced. For more on
05:34on this, we can cross straight over to the European Parliament in Strasbourg and bring in Euronews' EU
05:39editor, Maria Tadeo. Good morning, Maria. What is the latest on this?
05:44Well, good morning, Maven. So close yet, so far, it's a massive trade deal that could be signed
05:50with Latin American countries, including, of course, Brazil and Argentina. The head of the European
05:56Commission, as you said, was supposed to get on a flight on December 20th. But that is now,
06:00excuse the pun, up in the air, because the French are calling for a delay to this vote.
06:05Germany and Spain are pushing to get it done. They see big business opportunity,
06:10but it now hangs really in the hands and in the balance of the Italian Prime Minister,
06:15Giorgia Meloni. She could decide whether there's a qualified majority to get it through the finish
06:21line or a blocking minority enough to grind this to a halt. And now to debrief, we are joined indeed
06:27by Thomas Weitz, who is a member of the European Parliament for the Greens. Of course, you oppose
06:35this deal. Why? Because some would argue at this point, it justifies a logic.
06:40Well, it might be a good deal for industry, but we are sacrificing small and medium scale farmers.
06:44We're putting them into an unfair competition while cutting the funds for farming in the European
06:49Union. At the same time, we have a situation where, you know, pesticides are used in South
06:54America that are banned in the European Union. They have no control over the origin of beef.
06:59They have no control over the use of antibiotics as gross promoters. So that's double standards.
07:04OK, you say it's double standards. But when the Commission say we have done everything to include
07:08the safeguards. And by the way, you're going to vote that here. When they say you will get compensated
07:13if there is unfair competition, are they lying or what?
07:16Well, the safeguards is kind of a tranquilizer, you know, a sedative, especially for the French
07:21farmers. Basically, this is already in the trade agreement and it's just the implementation
07:25legislation. There's nothing new about that. These safeguard mechanisms will only start working
07:30after the damage has been done to the market. And as a farmer, you only go bankrupt once,
07:35because if you're bankrupt, then your land is owned by the bank and it's over.
07:38OK, but let's talk about the farmers. But some would argue the opposition to Mercosur has
07:43nothing to do with the terms now. It really is about, and I say this with all due respect,
07:47the farming lobby and the subsidies around it. And ultimately, it comes down to money.
07:52How do you respond to that?
07:53Well, it's the big farming industry that will profit. And it's the massive amount of small
07:58and medium farmers that will pay the price. So if this is the farming lobby that you're talking
08:02about here, I'm also part of the lobby that lobbies for small scale farmers. Because if we lose them,
08:07we lose rural areas. We lose infrastructure in rural areas. We also lose the ability to supply
08:13our population independently with food. And this is, I think, a high value that we should protect.
08:18What about those who say there's geopolitical value? This is a new alliance with Latin American
08:22countries. What you're doing is short sighted. And it's also dangerous at this moment in time.
08:26Well, there is absolutely geopolitical value in this, but then support the European farmers. You cannot
08:32cut the funds for the farmers by 20%, literally, and by 40% if you include inflation. Then support
08:39the farmers, right? And don't sacrifice them just for the profit of a few multinational companies
08:44or European industry. Okay, so how is this going to end then? Because the clock is really ticking.
08:48Some say if this flops on December 20th, that's it. Mercosur is dead and left for good now. So how will
08:54this end? And what can we put on the table in four days to get it through the finish line? Well,
08:59commission can still promise that they adjust the so-called multi-annual financial framework. So
09:03the budget for the next seven years and support farmers and, you know, being able to survive this
09:08on. They cannot do this in four days. And you know this very well. The deadline is December 20th.
09:12They cannot change the budget in four days. The commission can, if there's a political will,
09:16they can come out with the communication and give promises. At least it's not a final decision,
09:20but they can see that they take the worries of farmers serious. So, and they also do this to make
09:26this deal happen. Of course, a lot of this now depends too on the Italian prime minister,
09:31George Ameloni. The French are now calling for a delay to this vote. She could decide which way it
09:36goes. So which way is it going to go? I think she's going to carve in, as she did in many occasions.
09:41Unfortunately, that's what I expect from... Because she's weak? She's weak?
09:44No, because she has a tradition in promising and not fulfilling her promises. Okay. Well, thank you
09:50very much for joining us, sir. And of course, Maeve, that was Thomas Weiss, who is a member
09:56of the European Parliament. And of course, the Green Party. A vote is expected to on the safeguards,
10:01but the big vote, Maeve, will be the member states. And we just talked about, it really comes down to
10:07Rome. And George Ameloni, she has the power either to delay it and possibly kill it or make it fly.
10:13It does indeed. Maria Tadeo, thank you so much for that live update from quite a quiet Strasbourg
10:18this morning. And thanks, of course, to the Austrian MEP, Thomas Feitz as well.
10:21And while MEPs are voting today in Strasbourg, over 5,000 farmers from all across Europe and 1,000
10:28tractors are en route to Brussels for a major protest this Thursday, the same day, of course,
10:32as the EU summit. Our Jakob Janis has been taking a look at the farmers' winter of discontent.
10:38It sounds like a bad joke. Lumpy skin disease. But in France, nobody's laughing. Farmers are clashing
10:52with police as their herds get slaughtered to stop a viral outbreak. And strangely enough,
10:59this virus might be what kills one of the biggest trade deals in EU history. Here is the connection.
11:05French farming unions are fighting the systematic cooling of entire herds when just a single case
11:13is detected. Meanwhile, Brussels is pushing the Mercosur deal, a trade pact that would open the door
11:20to South American beef. Farmers call it a double standard. Why should we sacrifice our herds to meet
11:28high standards, they ask, when we are going to import cheap meat from Brazil produced with pesticides
11:35and antibiotics banned in Europe? And that anger lands in the European Parliament tomorrow.
11:42Our European lawmakers will vote on a reciprocity clause. It's basically a Miro rule. If you want to sell to
11:53Europe, you must meet European standards. If MEPs vote against it, they risk a revolt in rural Europe.
12:03And if they vote for it, South America might walk away as it doesn't want to import European laws.
12:11In the EU, our politics is often local. And right now, locals are angry.
12:20Yeah, could be honest there. But now moving on, are you a big online shopper? Then stay tuned for a
12:30levy coming your way from next summer. In an attempt to tackle the flood of cheap Chinese
12:36e-commerce packages, Brussels has agreed on a very concrete measure that will hit your pocket.
12:41Aida Sanchez reports.
12:44Three euro earrings? Add to the shopping cart. A five euro organizer for all your odd stocks?
12:50Add to the shopping cart. This toy for your five-year-old child, which is way cheaper on a
12:55Chinese website? Add to the shopping cart. Buying cheap objects from sites such as chain or
13:01Temu is a daily routine for many Europeans. But the situation will change in July 2026.
13:09EU countries have agreed to impose a three euro temporary flat custom fee for small parcels
13:15entering the EU. Until now, these objects have been exempt from duties. But why? Are the countries
13:21against the citizens saving some money? Far from it. Those packages pose a competitive disadvantage for
13:28European companies exposed to more taxes. Many of them pose health and safety risks for consumers.
13:35They might use toxic chemicals or don't follow the regulations that make them safe for children.
13:42Risks that citizens might not even be aware. Many of the websites even sell products that are illegal
13:48in the EU, like counterfeit products. The number of small parcels entering the EU has
13:53raised sharply in past years. And it looks it's not going down anytime soon.
13:58Ida Sanchez reporting for us there. But that does bring this Tuesday's edition of Europe Today to an
14:10end. Thank you so much for tuning in. Join us again tomorrow. We'll have all the latest on the
14:14Western Balkans summit that's taking place right here in the EU capital. So look forward to seeing you then.
14:20Take care and see you soon.
14:33Bye.
14:47Bye.
14:50Bye.
14:53Bye.
14:57Bye.
15:01Bye.
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