00:01The 27 leaders of the European Union gathered in Brussels for a two-day summit focused on
00:07Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the shockwaves caused by the Chinese economy, and the bloc's
00:12next long-term budget. Thursday's summit comes at the heels of a G7 meeting in Evian that managed
00:19to convince US President Donald Trump to sign a joint statement pledging to increase military
00:24support for Kiev and sanctions on Russia. For the European Commission President, the tide
00:30is turning, referring to Ukraine's recent gains on the battlefield.
00:34Russia, on the other hand, the economy is suffering. The fact that Russia has shut down the internet,
00:43closed telegram, for example, speaks for itself, because Russia is again rising an iron curtain,
00:50but now it's a digital iron curtain on their people.
00:54Volodymyr Zelensky, attending the meeting, said he intended to discuss the opening of all EU
01:00accession negotiation clusters for Ukraine. He reaffirmed Kiev's push for a faster path
01:06to membership, despite concerns from several member states. EU leaders will also focus on China.
01:13Brussels has concluded that EU-China trade is currently unsustainable, and something must
01:19change in the relationship to avoid an all-out confrontation.
01:23We definitely need more European coordination in our engagement with China to protect the
01:29European economy and to boost our competitiveness. So I'm very much open for these discussions.
01:35On Friday, leaders will turn to another contentious topic, the next seven-year EU budget,
01:41which the Commission has pitched at a record-breaking 2 trillion euros.
