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Europe Today: La cumbre UE-India entra en su fase decisiva para cerrar un acuerdo comercial
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Sintonice el nuevo programa matinal de 'Euronews', Europe Today, cada mañana a las 8:00 (hora de Bruselas). En solo 15 minutos, le ofrecemos un repaso a las principales noticias del día.
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00:00Good morning, it is Monday the 26th of January. I'm Maeve McMahan and this is Europe Today,
00:21your daily dose of European news and analysis live here on Euronews.
00:26Coming up today, all eyes are on the EU-India Summit taking place this week in New Delhi.
00:32After months of preparation and a decade of talks, the summit aims to finalise the details
00:37of an EU-India free trade agreement, one that would liberalise billions of euros in trade,
00:43cutting tariffs on European cars and wine, while expanding market access for Indian electronics,
00:48textiles and chemicals. Commission President Ursula von der Leyen,
00:52Council President Antonio Costa and Trade Commissioner Mara Sefkovic spent the weekend on a plane to India
00:58and our Euronews' EU editor Maria Tadeo was also on board and sent us this dispatch from New Delhi.
01:05Good morning, Europe Today. Indeed, on the road as we're in New Delhi, the European Union and India
01:10are standing on the cusp of signing a new trade agreement. The head of the commission calls this,
01:15quote, the mother of all deals. And that's because if this deal does go ahead,
01:20it will open up a market of more than 1.4 billion people for European companies.
01:25The talks, as I mentioned, are still ongoing. And today, the head of the commission,
01:30accompanied by the president of the European Council, Antonio Costa,
01:33will participate in a military parade as the guests of honour.
01:37And then tomorrow, it's time for the EU-India Summit. That's when the deal could,
01:43if everything goes well, come to fruition. Of course, the number of red lines are very well
01:47documented and reported. For the Indian authorities, they do not want to open up their agricultural
01:52market. That also involves, of course, products like dairy and grain. They believe their local
01:58manufacturers and their local producers should come before. But when European sources that we
02:03consulted, suggested that overall, that is not a problem for them. Because the overall benefits
02:08for the car makers, the chemical sector, the producers of olive oil, wine and spirits,
02:14the exporters of services here in India will greatly benefit from this agreement. As I mentioned,
02:19the talks continue. And yesterday night, we spoke with the man who is really in charge of the
02:24negotiations. And that is, of course, the trade commissioner, Marev Sheshkovich, who told us
02:29he really believes this time will be the right time. So the European Union is very close to
02:34getting it done. How close is it? We just had a very good meeting with Minister Goyal. I think
02:41it's our 11th meeting over the last 10 months. So we spent enormous amount of time together to get
02:45it done. So we are checking, you know, the latest documents. We are exchanging the last numbers.
02:52And I believe that we are very, very close. So 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. Why?
03:01I think they are known for being very tough negotiators. And also our starting positions
03:06have been very different. They had a high tariff, they 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?
03:22I 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. So we are working on that right now. And of course,
03:38always in the last hour. So you want to check the numbers, you want to be sure that
03:43we are both delivering and therefore we had a meeting this afternoon. The 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. It's something the commission loves to say.
03:55But for Europeans, we're watching Euronews today and 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, we are talking about almost 2 billion people.
04:15Then we are looking also at the level of tariff. So, I mean, what is very important to recall is that in some sector,
04:21India has tariff going up to 150 percent and therefore big parts of the economy.
04:28The whole sector has been completely closed off to the European exporters and now we are kind of reopening.
04:33So, the big benefit would be opening of the economy, second, 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 because this is really opening a new perspective for many sectors
04:52and I believe that we are truly opening a new chapter in strategic India-EU relations.
04:57Indians were hit heavily by the Trump tariffs too, the European Union too.
05:01It's a different deal, but nonetheless, there's a pressure of tariffs coming from the United States.
05:05Why the timing? Why sign it now?
05:07I think it's a high time. I 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 yourself von der Leyen took the political decision.
05:20Let's do our best. Let's try to have the best outcome.
05:22And 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 is the fact that the talks actually did take place.
06:15And this is coming from the initiative of the U.S. administration.
06:18It was the U.S. 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 trilateral format.
06:29There is no breakthrough yet, but this was a very significant first step following the talks.
06:34President Zelenskyy also said that the U.S. security guarantees for Ukraine are 100% ready.
06:40He also mentioned that the EU membership would be an economic guarantee for Ukraine.
06:45Once again, reiterating the importance of EU membership for Ukraine, of course.
06:49Now, the sticking point remained the same.
06:51And all the sides admit that this is Ukraine's territory.
06:53Zelenskyy once again said that Ukraine is not going to cede any territory
06:57and wants everybody to 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 may.
07:10OK, 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,
07:18we've seen more and more Europeans actually 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,
07:27said Brussels must move towards creating a European army.
07:31But what exactly would that mean in practice?
07:33Jakub Janos takes a look.
07:36It is a very small ask, said Donald Trump, about his desire to buy Greenland,
07:43calling 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 was more about sending a message
07:57than 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.
08:09If you combine all European countries,
08:13we actually have 1.5 million active duty soldiers.
08:16And that sounds huge, but it is a logistical nightmare.
08:20While the US military operates with 32 weapon systems, we have 172.
08:28That means mismatched spare parts, manuals, and ammunition that simply don't work together.
08:36And moving attack 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 3 days in peacetime
08:54and only 6 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.
09:11While 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.
09:25We are just ensuring that if the phone rings at 3 a.m., we can actually pick it up.
09:31Jakob Janis there.
09:37And now coming up, we'll be joined by Thomas Byrne,
09:39the 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.
09:55Morning, 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.
10:40And 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,
10:47to put pressure on, of course, Vladimir Putin to end the war?
10:49Well, 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.
11:08And 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 with the 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.
11:34We've benefited hugely from international trade over the years,
11:38and 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, and that will continue.
12:02I 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.
12:22Does 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 we, yes, we could have done more.
12:37And how 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 because 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, but 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 would be a big job for the Irish presidency, which 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.
13:42We greatly value the UN in all its facets and despite all its problems.
13:45So 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.
14:07The 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, do 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.
14:42We'll be back tomorrow.
15:02Bye.
15:02Bye.
15:02Bye.
15:02Bye.
15:02Bye.
15:02Bye.
15:02Bye.
15:02Bye.
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