00:00And I'm very happy to say we are joined by Luxembourg's Prime Minister, Luke Freedom.
00:05Sir, thank you very much for joining us on Euronews.
00:08I want to start with a question that may seem trivial, but on a day like today, it's important.
00:13How are you feeling? Nervous? Anxious? Concerned?
00:16No, you can't be nervous if you are Prime Minister.
00:18I think what matters is that we stay focused on our objective,
00:22and that is to provide Ukraine with necessary financial means to survive in this war,
00:27because it's a war against Ukraine. It's a war that jeopardizes everything that we have built up after the Second World War.
00:34Borders cannot be changed by force, and so we want to support Ukraine.
00:38And we are looking for the means to continue on a sustainable path to support Ukraine.
00:44You just said something incredibly important, which is this is not just about Ukraine,
00:48but it's really about the future and the fate of Europe after the Russian invasion.
00:53What happens if today there's no solution? Would you argue Europe will also be in jeopardy?
00:59No, I don't think so, but I think we will find a solution.
01:01We have two options on the table to support financially Ukraine.
01:06One is to use funds out of the EU budget, or to make sure that the assets,
01:11sovereign assets of Russia that are with European banks,
01:16can be used to guarantee a loan to Ukraine.
01:19This is extremely complex because it has never been done in the past,
01:24but I think we can find ways to organize that in a way that makes sure that it works
01:30without jeopardizing also the financial stability of the Eurozone
01:34and making sure that Belgium, where most of those assets are located,
01:38in Euroclear will not be the target of retaliation measures or court cases in the future.
01:45And who's the biggest headache today? Because a lot will depend on Giorgio Menoni and Italy.
01:51Is it Orban today the biggest headache, or maybe do we find ourselves in a strange situation
01:54where it's actually the Italian prime minister that you need to convince?
01:58We need to be supportive of Belgium, which is the main place where these sovereign assets are located.
02:06And I believe that if we take European decisions, we need to bear the consequences also together.
02:12We need to do some risk sharing here.
02:14And that is why I think we need to support Belgium,
02:18and we need to find a group of countries that share the same risks.
02:23We should all support them.
02:24But we know that some countries are more favorable to Russia than others.
02:28Unity is also essential.
02:30We need to work for unity.
02:31We need to discuss the future of Europe and security architecture of Europe.
02:36That is what is at stake.
02:37And I think that all countries, including those that you have mentioned, see that risk for the future.
02:42So you think the Belgian prime minister will be supported?
02:45You see him coming around because he's played a very tough game.
02:48I talked to him on many occasions, including yesterday.
02:52And I think we are moving into the right direction, but it will remain extremely complex.
02:57This is, as I said, from a legal point of view, this is extremely difficult
03:01because we don't want to do a confiscation of assets because we need to keep the rule of law.
03:08Financial stability also means that assets that are in Europe cannot be taken away by a political decision.
03:13On the other hand, we must find a way either to use EU funds, so the EU budget,
03:20or to use Russian assets to guarantee for the future the loans that we are giving to Ukraine.
03:26And that is a complex discussion that we will have to have, but I'm optimistic that we find a solution.
03:31And you spoke with the Belgian prime minister, which is very on brand for the Benelux.
03:35What does your political instinct say?
03:38Is this something that he can come around to and find a solution?
03:41How did you find this conversation? Constructive?
03:42Of course. I mean, Belgium is a country that is used to many compromises,
03:47but this is a compromise among all of us.
03:49Europe is a group of 27 countries, and we need to gather to find solutions.
03:55It's about the future of our continent.
03:57It's about whether we want a continent where force decides on how the future is decided,
04:03or whether it's in a peaceful manner.
04:05And we want a peaceful manner.
04:06We know that we need to be more sovereign, because America might not be there with us on all steps in the future.
04:13We have Russia, which is a permanent threat.
04:15And it's, as the European Union, for peace, prosperity, and security that we need to stand together today.
04:21And, Prime Minister, I must ask you a final question,
04:23because along those lines of new relations that may emerge and new bridges that the European Union needs,
04:29is the Mercosur, a major trade deal with Latin American countries.
04:32The French say they want to delay to this vote.
04:34It seems the Italians too now.
04:36What happens if this gets delayed again?
04:38Will you be furious, disappointed?
04:39Is this the end of it?
04:40If borders around us are being closed, or tariffs are being introduced, we need new markets.
04:47And I think Mercosur, like other free trade agreements, serve our economy,
04:52create jobs in our countries, because we produce goods that we need to export somewhere.
04:56And that is why, independent of when we sign, we should stick to what we have agreed to with other countries.
05:02And Mercosur is one of the examples, despite the fact that we need to take into account,
05:07of course, the concerns of our farmers, but that we can solve domestically or within Europe,
05:13at the same time opening markets for our industries in the rest of the world.
05:17Well, Prime Minister, thank you very much for joining us on Euronews.
05:20Of course, the coverage of this very important summit continues all day on Euronews.
05:25Thank you so much, Maria Tadeo there, Euronews' EU editor.
05:28And, of course, to your guest, the Luxembourg Prime Minister, Luc Frieden.
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