00:01Today, 27 EU leaders meet in Brussels for the European Council.
00:05The official agenda highlights competitiveness and migration.
00:09But war overshadows it all.
00:12And your reporter doesn't yet know exactly what they will be saying.
00:15But we can certainly guess what keeps them up at night.
00:18Especially as Russia's war in Ukraine and the US-Israeli war in Iran
00:23have become deeply interlinked.
00:25Let's take a look together.
00:27With the Strait of Hormuz effectively closed, energy and petrol costs are soaring.
00:32And because that vital waterway handles a massive share of global fertiliser shipments,
00:37it also means higher grocery prices for everyone.
00:40To ease that pressure, Trump announced last week that he is lifting some sanctions on Russian oil.
00:46The US Treasury issued a temporary permit allowing countries to purchase Russian crude currently stranded at sea.
00:53And Washington insists this only applies to already loaded cargo.
00:58Strictly ruling out new trades or major financial benefits for Russia.
01:03But European leaders are strongly pushing back.
01:07German Chancellor Friedrich Merz called the move wrong.
01:10While Council President Antonio Costa argued it directly undermines European security by letting Moscow cash in.
01:18But here is the bitter irony.
01:21Since Trump's decision, oil prices have not drastically fallen.
01:25But European security has.
01:28This sanctions relief could hand the Kremlin a staggering $150 million a day.
01:34That single day of revenue buys up to 7,000 Iranian-designed Shahid drones.
01:39Or could fund sign-up bonuses for 5,000 new Russian soldiers.
01:45Every single day.
01:46And after bashing traditional diplomacy, Trump is disappointed Europe is not rushing to help secure the Middle East.
01:54But as EU leaders gathering Brussels just days after the Ides of March,
02:00one could say they know a political backstabbing when they see one.
02:04When the
