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Europe Today: Rozpoczyna się szczyt UE-Indie, czy zakończy się umową handlową?
Unia Europejska i Indie spotykają się w New Delhi, by sfinalizować długo oczekiwaną umowę o wolnym handlu. Porozumienie ma otworzyć rynki i zliberalizować wymianę towarową wartą miliardy euro.
CZYTAJ WIĘCEJ : http://pl.euronews.com/2026/01/26/europe-today-rozpoczyna-sie-szczyt-ue-indie-czy-zakonczy-sie-umowa-handlowa
Zasubskrybuj nasz kanał.Euronews jest dostępny na Dailymotion w 12 językach
Unia Europejska i Indie spotykają się w New Delhi, by sfinalizować długo oczekiwaną umowę o wolnym handlu. Porozumienie ma otworzyć rynki i zliberalizować wymianę towarową wartą miliardy euro.
CZYTAJ WIĘCEJ : http://pl.euronews.com/2026/01/26/europe-today-rozpoczyna-sie-szczyt-ue-indie-czy-zakonczy-sie-umowa-handlowa
Zasubskrybuj nasz kanał.Euronews jest dostępny na Dailymotion w 12 językach
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00:00Wszystkie prawa zastrzeżone.
00:30Wszystkie prawa zastrzeżone.
01:00EU editor Maria Tadeo was also on board and sent us this dispatch from New Delhi.
01:05Good morning, Europe.
01:06Today, indeed, on the road as we're in New Delhi, the European Union and India are standing on the cusp of signing a new trade agreement.
01:14The head of the commission calls this, quote, the mother of all deals.
01:17And that's because if this deal does go ahead, it will open up a market of more than 1.4 billion people for European companies.
01:25The talks, as I mentioned, are still ongoing.
01:28And today, the head of the commission, accompanied by the president of the European Council, Antonio Costa, will participate in a military parade as the guests of honor.
01:37And then tomorrow, it's time for the EU-India summit.
01:41That's when the deal could, if everything goes well, come to fruition.
01:45Of course, the number of red lines are very well documented and reported for the Indian authorities.
01:50They do not want to open up their agricultural market.
01:53That also involves, of course, products like dairy and grain.
01:57They believe their local manufacturers and their local producers should come before.
02:01But when European sources that we consulted suggested that overall, that is not a problem for them because the overall benefits for the car makers, the chemical sector, the producers of olive oil, wine and spirits, the exporters of services here in India will greatly benefit from this agreement.
02:19As I mentioned, the talks continue.
02:20And yesterday night, we spoke with the man who is really in charge of the negotiations.
02:25And that is, of course, the Trade Commissioner, Madov Shashkovic, who told us he really believes this time will be the right time.
02:32So, European Union is very close to getting it done.
02:35How close is it?
02:36We just had a very good meeting with Minister Goyal.
02:40I think it's our 11th meeting over the last 10 months.
02:43So, we spent enormous amount of time together to get it done.
02:46So, we are checking, you know, the latest documents.
02:51We are exchanging the last numbers.
02:52And I believe that we are very, very close.
02:54So, come Tuesday, there will be a signature?
02:56I mean, if we do our utmost, then I believe we will have a signature.
02:58You've said the Indians have been tough negotiators.
03:00Why?
03:01I think they are known for being very tough negotiators.
03:05And also, our starting positions have been very different.
03:08They had a high tariff.
03:09They are a developing country.
03:11And we wanted to respect their specificity and at the same time to protect European general interest.
03:16And, of course, is there anything that's a red line for them that we cannot accept and vice versa?
03:21What's the sticking point of this hour?
03:23I think that we had a very frank and open discussion at the beginning of the last year
03:28where we decided to keep the most sensitive sectors for both of us outside of this deal
03:33so we can really focus on the positive outcome.
03:36So, we are working on that right now.
03:37And, of course, always in the last hour.
03:40So, you want to check the numbers.
03:41You want to be sure that we are both delivering.
03:44And, therefore, we had a meeting this afternoon.
03:46The teams will work on it.
03:48And I believe that tomorrow we will complete the whole exercise.
03:51This is the mother of all trade deals.
03:53It's something the commission loves to say.
03:55But for Europeans, we're watching Euronews today.
03:57And they go, what does that mean?
03:58How is that going to impact European businesses and sectors?
04:01Where is the benefit, the value of this deal going to come from?
04:04First and foremost, this is the largest trade deal ever.
04:08If you look at it from the point of view of the number of consumers,
04:11we are talking about almost 2 billion people.
04:15Then we are looking also at the level of tariffs.
04:18So, I mean, what is very important to recall is that in some sector,
04:21India has tariffs going up to 150%.
04:24And, therefore, big parts of the economy,
04:28the whole sector has been completely closed off to the European exporters.
04:32And now we are kind of reopening.
04:33So, the big benefit would be opening of the economy.
04:36Second, building up the integrated global supply chains
04:39and hedging against the global instability.
04:41Is there any particular sector that you say this is a good deal for you?
04:45I believe that we will have that good message
04:47because this is really opening a new perspective for many sectors.
04:52And I believe that we are truly opening a new chapter
04:54in strategic India-EU relations.
04:57Indians were hit heavily by the Trump tariffs, too.
05:00The European Union, too.
05:01It's a different deal.
05:02But, nonetheless, there's a pressure of tariffs coming from the United States.
05:05Why the timing?
05:06Why sign it now?
05:07I think it's a high time.
05:09I mean, it was more than 10 years in the making.
05:11And I think that momentum, which was built when we've been here in February,
05:15the whole College of Commissioners and Prime Minister Mordy and Ursula von der Leyen
05:19took the political decision.
05:20Let's do our best.
05:21Let's try to have the best outcome.
05:23And it would help us to kind of have this insurance against the global trade turmoil.
05:29And, therefore, now I think it's the highest time to do it.
05:32And I believe that it will help both sides and our economic operators.
05:38EU Commissioner Mara Sefcovic there, speaking to our Maria Tadeo from the Indian capital, New Delhi.
05:43And another issue where the EU and India hope to work together is ending the war in Ukraine,
05:48although Brussels remains wary of Modi's ties to Vladimir Putin.
05:52As fighting rages, two days of talks on Ukraine have come to an end in Abu Dhabi.
05:56For more on these talks, we can turn now to our Ukraine correspondent, Sasha Vakilina.
06:00Good morning, Sasha.
06:02So, President Zelenskyy has called these talks in Abu Dhabi constructive.
06:06What does that exactly mean?
06:07In fact, all the sides described those talks as constructive.
06:10But I think it's fair to say that the most constructive thing about it
06:13is the fact that the talks actually did take place.
06:15And this is coming from the initiative of the US administration.
06:18It was the US envoys that managed to convince the Russians to actually, for the first time,
06:23sit down with the Ukrainian delegation and negotiators there at the same table in this
06:28trilateral format.
06:29There is no breakthrough yet, but this was a very significant first step.
06:33Following the talks, President Zelenskyy also said that the US security guarantees for Ukraine
06:38are 100% ready.
06:40He also mentioned that the EU membership would be an economic guarantee for Ukraine.
06:44once again reiterating the importance of EU membership for Ukraine, of course.
06:49Now, the sticking point remained the same, and all the sides admit that this is Ukraine's
06:53territory.
06:53Zelenskyy once again said that Ukraine is not going to cede any territory and wants everybody
06:58to respect its territorial integrity.
07:00Well, Moscow negotiators said that they do indeed, once again, repeat it.
07:04They do want Ukraine to withdraw its troops, even from the territories that Russia never controlled
07:09may.
07:09OK, but still that same sticking point, of course.
07:11Sasha Vakilina, thank you so much for that live update.
07:14So with no real end in sight to the war in Ukraine, we've seen more and more Europeans
07:19actually calling for the EU to take full control of its own security.
07:23In an interview with Euronews, the Spanish foreign minister, José Manuel Alvarez, said
07:27Brussels must move towards creating a European army.
07:31But what exactly would that mean in practice?
07:33Jakub Janos takes a look.
07:34It is a very small ask, said Donald Trump about his desire to buy Greenland, calling it just
07:44Big, beautiful, piece of ice.
07:47He reportedly raged when Europe sent troops there.
07:50But let's be honest, sending around 40 soldiers from 8 nations
07:55was more about sending a message than sending actual power.
07:59But what if we assembled a European army?
08:02Well, the reality is, we probably won't.
08:05But the EU is forging something else.
08:08If you combine all European countries, we actually have one and a half million active-duty soldiers.
08:16And that sounds huge, but it is a logistical nightmare.
08:21While the US military operates with 32 weapon systems, we have 172.
08:27That means mismatched spare parts, manuals and ammunition that simply don't work together.
08:36And moving a tank from Lisbon to Warsaw can currently take months of paperwork.
08:41That is why the EU is rushing to fix the so-called military Schengen.
08:48The new goal is to cut that travel permission time down to just three days in peacetime
08:54and only six hours in an emergency.
08:57So the goal isn't a single super army, but making our 27 existing armies actually compatible.
09:06But fixing the system is the easy part.
09:09Finding the soldiers is harder.
09:12While Latvia and Croatia are bringing back the draft, the question remains.
09:17Is the wider European public ready to fight?
09:21So that's why we aren't replacing NATO.
09:24We are just ensuring that if the phone rings at 3am, we can actually pick it up.
09:31Yeah, good to be honest there.
09:37And now coming up, we'll be joined by Thomas Byrne, the Irish Minister of State for European Affairs and Defence.
09:43Affiliated with the centre-right Fianna Fáil Party, a solicitor by trade,
09:47Minister Byrne has served in a number of roles within government
09:50and is currently preparing Ireland for the EU presidency this July.
09:54Good morning, Minister.
09:55Good morning, Maeve.
09:56Good to have you with us here.
09:57Thanks very much.
09:57So look, let's just talk first about those US-led talks on Ukraine to end the war.
10:02Do you have any faith in these talks?
10:03Well, I have faith in the process and we're very grateful that the US is doing this,
10:07but nothing's going to happen really until Russia stops what it's doing.
10:12And that's what has to happen.
10:13All through these peace talks, we see Russia bombing homes, maternity hospital,
10:19causing all sorts of destruction in Ukraine.
10:23And I think when that ends, then all the preparations that we're doing,
10:27whether it's in those talks in the Middle East
10:29or indeed work at the European Commission and the Council last week on a prosperity plan for Ukraine,
10:34well, all that can come to fruition if Russia stops and if we can get agreement at these peace talks.
10:39And do you think this week in India, the Europeans could put some pressure on Modi there,
10:43use perhaps some soft power and diplomacy to put pressure on him,
10:46to put pressure on, of course, Vladimir Putin to end the war?
10:50Well, I've no doubt that Ukraine will be part of the discussions this week in India.
10:54I think the work that the Commission is doing in India is very, very important.
10:57I think it's absolutely essential for Europe and indeed for Ireland as well.
11:00Britain has had a trade deal recently with India
11:02and it certainly puts some of their goods at a competitive advantage compared to, say, some Irish goods.
11:07And I think it's very, very important that we can put in place a trade agreement with India as well.
11:12Diversification is very important.
11:14It's very important that we open up as many markets as possible.
11:16and we do that.
11:19The Commission does that on all our behalves.
11:21I think it's very, very welcome.
11:22So Ireland would support the EU-India trade deal?
11:24Because you didn't support the EU-Mircus work.
11:26Obviously, we'd have to look at the details of it.
11:27But in principle, Ireland is very much in favour of trade diversification
11:31and opening up as many markets as possible.
11:33We've benefited hugely from international trade over the years
11:37and we want that to continue and we want that to change and diversify.
11:41Let's go back to Ukraine.
11:42Of course, that came up last week in that EU summit.
11:45And President Zelensky in Davos was very, very critical minister of the European leaders.
11:50Did he go a step too far, do you think?
11:52No, I'm not going to criticise President Zelensky.
11:54I think he was quite strong in his words.
11:55I think it is a fact that there's been a lot of support from the European Union,
11:58European countries, including Ireland, for Ukraine.
12:00And that will continue.
12:01I think what's happening in Ukraine at the moment is pretty unparalleled.
12:05It's unconscionable.
12:06It shouldn't be happening.
12:08His people are suffering a huge amount.
12:09So I have a huge amount of understanding for him.
12:11But I think our role now is to do as much as possible to bring this to an end.
12:15We must continue to put economic pressure on Russia.
12:18He piled on the pressure.
12:19He said Europe's not doing enough.
12:20It wouldn't be able to defend itself.
12:21Does he have a point?
12:23Well, certainly before Christmas, we would have been in favour of seizing the assets,
12:27the frozen assets here in Europe.
12:29We weren't able to achieve that.
12:30But we certainly have achieved a very significant loan for Ukraine from that European Council.
12:35But yes, we could have done more.
12:37How did European leaders feel last Thursday about that criticism?
12:40I know you don't want to make a point on it, but what was the mood in the room last Thursday?
12:44I don't think it was a big feature of the discussion in terms of his comments.
12:48But I think certainly people want to see this war come to an end
12:51because they realise that it is an economic and security threat to Europe and to all of us.
12:55And what about EU membership for Ukraine?
12:57Is it possible by 2027, do you think?
12:59Well, look, it's extremely ambitious.
13:01But if that's part of the peace deal, we'll certainly have to make it work.
13:04Let's see what happens.
13:05And certainly it will be a big job for the Irish presidency,
13:07which starts in July, to make that happen.
13:10We have put enlargement down as one of our top priorities.
13:13We see a huge opportunity to finish negotiations with Montenegro to really progress Albania
13:18and to have Ukraine and Moldova into the realm as well of European membership.
13:24I'm not giving a date, but if the peace talks demand an earlier date,
13:27then the European Union will have to work towards that.
13:29What about the Board of Peace, President Trump's Board of Peace?
13:32Could that possibly replace the UN?
13:34What are your thoughts on that?
13:35Look, I don't think anybody wants it to replace the UN.
13:37I think that was the unanimous consideration of the leaders last week.
13:40It's certainly our view in Ireland.
13:41We greatly value the UN in all its facets and despite all its problems.
13:46So we don't see any organisation replacing the UN.
13:48And I think that's generally the view all around the place.
13:51And just finally, a brief, brief word on Mercosur.
13:53How do you feel having rejected it?
13:55I mean, there's been a lot of criticism here among senior MEPs.
13:58Look, we weren't able to get political consensus for it,
14:01notwithstanding the very significant benefits to Ireland of Mercosur,
14:04which will happen if it's implemented.
14:06to where the government simply wasn't satisfied with the situation for farmers.
14:10And that's been a political reality in Ireland and in France.
14:12OK, Minister Thomas Byrne, thank you so much for coming into us here in the studio.
14:16And thank you so much for tuning in.
14:18For more on any of the stories we've been discussing,
14:20do visit yournews.com.
14:21But that brings this edition of Europe Today to an end.
14:24We'll be back tomorrow.
14:25We'll be in New Delhi.
14:26We'll be bringing you pictures of the European Commission President
14:28in a traditional Indian sari.
14:29See you then.
14:36We'll be back tomorrow.
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