EU leaders debate Ukraine as Costa opens diplomatic channel with Kremlin

Name: EU leaders debate Ukraine as Costa opens diplomatic channel with Kremlin
Uploaded: 2026-06-19T07:05:13+00:00
Duration: 19 min 20 s
Channel: euronews (in English)

00:14Good morning, it is Friday the 19th of June. I'm Maeve McMahan and this is Europe Today.

00:20Bringing you all the day, the news to start your morning live here on Euronews.

00:25Coming up, EU Council President Antonio Costa has opened a diplomatic channel with the Kremlin

00:31five years into the Russia-Ukraine war. During late night talks here in Brussels attended by

00:37the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, some EU leaders voiced concern that they had not been

00:42consulted. We get the latest from our correspondent Shona Murray. And during the night President

00:48Zelensky asked EU leaders to endorse Ukraine's fast-track bid for EU membership. In a WhatsApp

00:55message to the press, the Ukrainian President said his country, quote, deserves full EU membership

01:00more than any other European country. He stressed that Ukraine had even, quote, survived Viktor Orban.

01:07Plus, a fresh face around the table. Hungary's new Prime Minister, Petr Maia, received a hero's

01:13welcome at his first EU summit in Brussels. While the former Prime Minister Viktor Orban pursued a

01:19policy of vetoes on Ukraine-related issues from financial support to EU enlargement, Petr Maia has

01:26signalled a different approach. We'll have the latest with our Hungarian correspondent, Sándor Ziris.

01:31But first, EU leaders will meet again this Friday as the second day of the EU summit gets underway.

01:37The talks come hot on the heels of a gathering of NATO defence ministers, during which the US

01:42defence secretary accused some allies of, quote, free-riding and criticised others for not allowing

01:48their air bases to be used by US jets during bombing operations in Iran earlier this year.

01:54Your news, Shona Murray, has been covering all these meetings for us and joins us now for an update.

02:00So, Shona, tell us, what is the latest? Did that news that President Kushta has opened the line with

02:05Moscow dominate the summit so far?

02:09Well, good morning, Maeve. Indeed, Ukraine did not dominate the vast majority of proceedings

02:13last night. There was a lengthy discussion present in the room. For most of it was President of

02:17Ukraine, Vladimir Zelensky. As we know, this has been a momentous week for Ukraine as they opened up

02:22the first cluster of chapters in relation to negotiations to become eventually a member of

02:27the European Union. So that was a key thing. Also, there's a discussion on the situation on the

02:32battlefield in Ukraine. And then when Vladimir Zelensky left, there was a robust debate about

02:37a decision by Antonio Kushta, the president of the European Council, which represents the member

02:41states, to engage in a line of communication with the Kremlin on two occasions. Now, the idea being,

02:48of course, that when the war ends with Russia, it has to end in some sort of negotiations.

02:52But some countries like Germany, like France, the Baltic countries feel that this wasn't the right time

02:57because it's clear that Vladimir Putin is not ready to end the war and engage in any meaningful

03:03process. Other countries, though, other diplomats made the point that, you know, at the end of the

03:08day, opening up channels isn't a very problematic issue, if it does materialise that there could be

03:15some sort of peace process. And importantly, Vladimir Zelensky, the Ukrainians are saying that the

03:20European Union, the EU, really needs to take better control when it comes to diplomatic channels in

03:25this regard. Maeve? And meanwhile, Shona, over at the NATO headquarters, Pete Hegsett has been calling

03:30for a review of U.S. military presence all across Europe in a very feisty address to NATO allies.

03:37Fill us in. Yeah, indeed. I mean, we saw a relatively successful G7 summit where the U.S.

03:44and European allies seem to have a much more convivial relationship. We saw the Memorandum of

03:49understanding being signed by the United States and Iran. Relations between Trump and allies seemed

03:55good. So there was an expectation that going into that defence ministerial meeting yesterday with NATO

04:00that there could have been, you know, a reset in relation somewhat. But Pete Hegsett really upended

04:06that hope for allies. He went in there all guns blazing, lambasting allies for not helping the United

04:11States when it came to the war in Iran. He essentially said that they abandoned him. And then he announced

04:17what

04:17he described as a force review, essentially a review of the United States troops all across Europe and

04:23all across NATO territory. This comes at the same time when the United States is withdrawing assets

04:29and capabilities from the NATO force model. So things like certain submarines, F-16s, F-35,

04:35long range strike capabilities will be removed and no longer accessible for NATO. Take a listen to

04:41Pete Hegsett yesterday. The United States has defended Europe for generations. And the president

04:48said all he said was that our jets would need to take off from bases in Europe or our ships

04:54from ports

04:55to strike targets in the Middle East. Iranian targets that threaten European interests even more

05:02directly than they threaten us. But too many of our allies said no. Or tried to drown us in arcane

05:11legal debates or criticized us publicly for doing what they aren't prepared or able to do themselves.

05:19It was shameful.

05:20Pete Hegsett there. And before that, our Shona Murray reporting live from the EU summit.

05:24And now for the view from Sweden on Ukraine's EU membership aspirations. Our Europe editor,

05:29Maria Tseo, spoke exclusively to their European affairs minister, Jessica Rosenkatz. But she started

05:35by asking her about the new tools on the table to counter the threat from China.

05:39What I think and hope is that we go from words to action, because we have seen for a long

05:45time that

05:46China has an aim of global economic domination. And that can potentially, and we've already seen it,

05:53that can hurt European businesses. So we have to rethink if China wants to, doesn't want to,

06:01you know, work with the EU in a level with a level playing field, then we have to reconsider

06:07our options when it comes to trade. And we have to make sure that we have European businesses back.

06:13It doesn't mean that we don't want free trade. We want to continue to work also with China.

06:17But it needs to be a fair game. You heard right here from the president of Ukraine saying that

06:22he wants in the European Union, he wants that to happen fast. Is that something your country

06:28in unanimity around the 27 member states can allow for a fast entry of Ukraine into this European

06:34Union? I would say that our support to Ukraine is existential. It's a moral obligation, but it is

06:39also an investment in European security. And this also comes down to enlargement. And Ukraine belongs in

06:45the European family. So Sweden is very supportive of both opening negotiations, which we did. I

06:51personally took part earlier this week when we opened the first cluster. And we need to open even

06:56more clusters. And you have high hopes for the new Hungarian prime minister. He is facilitating the

07:02clusters and the negotiations, but he also said no fast track and there will be a referendum, a membership.

07:07I mean, we see advancements from the Ukrainian side. They are doing real reforms back home,

07:14which is impressive during an ongoing war. And when a candidate country delivers so much,

07:19so must the EU. And therefore, it's it's it's a must that we continue with these negotiations.

07:25And I hear a completely new tone from the new Hungarian government, which which makes me very happy.

07:31And I hope now during this summit that we can be 27 countries agreeing on our support to Ukraine.

07:39I'm sticking with that topic of Hungary. As you heard, Hungary's new prime minister,

07:43Peter Magyar, is at this very first, his very first European Council here in Brussels,

07:47opening a new chapter, many say, in EU-Hungary relations. For more, I'm joined now in the studio

07:53by our Hungarian correspondent, Sándor Zeros. Just a reminder of yours, how relevant is this change of

07:59guard? Good morning, Maeve. Indeed, Peter Magyar has a completely new approach towards the European

08:05Union than what we saw during the power of Orbán Viktor, Viktor Orbán, because, you know, Orbán was

08:13blocking systematically each document which was related to the support of Ukraine. And Peter Magyar has a

08:20sort of constructive approach he wants to negotiate. And then this is what we saw actually yesterday,

08:26because at the end of the day, the joint declaration went out in the name of the EU 27. So

08:32Magyar

08:33approved it also. But he said that the document was actually watered down, and they removed at his

08:39request one part which was related to fast tracking Ukraine's membership. Nevertheless, this is a new

08:46approach, and it was very warmly welcomed in Brussels. Several leaders praised Magyar. Let's maybe take a

08:54look of what Magyar said about this new approach yesterday when he arrived at the summit.

09:01We will not agree on everything, but we will not fight just for the sake of fighting. We will not

09:06agree or veto here for domestic or party political reasons, but solely on basis of Hungarian interests.

09:13I think this will be a novelty, as well as the fact that for the first time since March 2025,

09:19there is a chance, a serious chance, that there will be an accepted European Council conclusion.

09:27Peter Magyar there. And of course, we know the former Prime Minister Viktor Orban was also in town

09:31these days. What was he up to?

09:33Yes. So this was the first official trip of Orban to Brussels since his election defeat. He met his

09:41fellow leaders from the Patriots for Europe political group. And he said that despite his defeat, Patriots

09:48will still grow and they will still win elections across Europe. Orban also said that Peter Magyar

09:54should actually veto the next European budget to get more money from Brussels. So from this sentence,

10:01we can see that Orban did not change at all. His political stance is the same related to Europe as

10:08it was in the past. And his political future uncertain. Chandra Ziris, thank you so much

10:12for that update there. And of course, for all the latest from the EU summit and the tense talks today

10:17on the EU's €2 trillion long-term budget, our rolling live blog continues on yournews.com.

10:23But now, moving on to Switzerland, where the US-Iran deal was expected to be formally signed today.

10:29Today was officially meant to mark the end of the US-Israeli war against Iran and the beginning

10:33of the new stage of negotiations. A 14-point memorandum of understanding setting out the

10:39framework for talks during a 60-day negotiation period was though already signed remotely by the

10:45US and Iran on Wednesday. For more, we can head straight to Switzerland and bring in AP correspondent

10:50Philip Crowther. Good morning, Philip. So just tell us what exactly is happening? Why was the signing

10:56ceremony called off? And what does it say about the Trump administration's confidence in this very deal?

11:04I'll tell you what, we'll just stick around here and wait and see. See if Vice President

11:09J.D. Vance maybe turns up in the end. He has postponed his trip for now. That does not mean

11:14that he might be here later, maybe at the weekend. All the other parties also stand ready, not here in

11:21Switzerland right now, but in their respective capitals, to potentially travel over here to

11:25Switzerland for talks on Iran's nuclear program. Those parties, of course, being the United States,

11:31Iran, but also the mediators of this memorandum of understanding that has been signed, those

11:38mediators being Pakistan and Qatar. Now, there's no official reason for there to be a signing

11:44ceremony here in Switzerland. You'd like to have one, of course, if you're proud of the agreement

11:49that has been reached. Maybe that is simply not the case for the United States. A lot of criticism

11:54coming from pretty much both sides of the political aisle, including Republicans of this deal that

12:01was reached between the United States and Iran. Again, no reason really to sign it again, because

12:06it has already been signed by Iran in Tehran, by U.S. President Donald Trump in Versailles over dinner

12:13with his French counterpart, and also by the mediator Pakistan. Does it show a lack of confidence in this

12:20deal from the United States? Well, maybe. It is something that the Trump administration is having

12:25a very hard time selling back in Washington, and that might be one of the reasons why this trip so

12:33far is not working out. J.D. Vance, the U.S. Vice President, though, made it clear yesterday that he

12:39is

12:39still willing to travel here to start another round of negotiations on Iran's nuclear program, because

12:46remember that these were discussions between the United States and Iran that were actually happening

12:51before the war began at the end of February. Okay, Philip Crowther, but of course, some good news

12:56with oil prices dropping as the Strait of Ormus gradually reopens. Thank you so much for that live

13:00broadcast there from Switzerland. And for more analysis, we can now bring in Tommy Houtenen, the

13:05director of the European People's Party think tank here in Brussels, known, of course, as the Wilfred Martin

13:10Centre. Good morning, Tommy. Good morning. Tell us, what is the view from Brussels on this U.S.-Iran deal?

13:15Well, as you said, you have very clearly two dimensions. As you mentioned, markets seem to be

13:21very happy, oil prices going down, so, you know, you have impression it's a lasting piece. But as the

13:27cancellation of the meeting in Switzerland indicates, the deal is very fragile, and the problem

13:34remains. You have the issue of, you know, Iran nuclear capabilities, enrichment to 60 percent,

13:44Strait of Ormus, and how is that going to open up, and the regional implications.

13:49And that's the thing, the fact that the U.S. vice president is no longer traveling to Switzerland

13:53for the signing, nor the talks. It's a bad sign, right?

13:57Yeah. Well, I think that there are two dimensions. They try to hurry it up, but you have the dimension

14:04of Iran, the negotiations, who is starting first, who is making the first commitment.

14:09On the other hand, you have the impression that in Washington, there's a high pressure

14:12from the Conservatives' side, but in overall about the deal. I think that they are going

14:18to manage that, and I think Vance is maybe trying to avoid a situation where he's kind

14:22of somehow going there and trapped. Normally, in those meetings, when you go there, it's normally

14:27for signing. You need to know what's going to be agreed, and that's clearly not the case

14:32this time.

14:33And, of course, Lebanon is left out of the deal.

14:35Absolutely.

14:35What leverage do the Europeans have here?

14:37Well, as Macron has said, you know, we need to be involved. Leverage, there's not so much.

14:44There's this discussion of 300 billion euros. Of course, that's just a framework to be agreed

14:51in upcoming 60 days. Maybe that gives some leverage, but it's very clear indicates when

14:56we need to be... Lebanon is the crucial point, because, as you mentioned, Israel is out of

15:01the deal, and we will see how they react.

15:03And last night at the EU summit, Tommy, we saw a big fight among EU leaders regarding

15:07Antonio Costa, the president's liaisons with the Kremlin. What is your view here? Was he

15:12right to get in touch?

15:13I think what is very important, especially the European side, when we have various players,

15:19we have EU institutions, we are head of states, we are investing a lot on Ukraine, and we have

15:23Ukrainians, especially as Ukraine in the future will be seen more as a net security provider.

15:28And clearly, the coordination has not worked. You should be more or less in the same chat

15:34group on information. I think that's the issue, because if that coordination does not happen,

15:40there's two questions there. First of all, what is the signal? Have we agreed? Are we

15:44pushing the same message? Because you should... Secondly, is Ukraine involved?

15:48So was Antonio Costa wrong?

15:49I think it's very clear that the coordination has not worked. I think that's crucial on this

15:57issue. I think many head of states have indicated that.

16:00Okay. Topic that will be dominating, again, the talks here in Brussels, Tommy Houten. And thank you

16:04so much for joining us here on Europe Today. But now, of course, despite the busy week on the

16:09geopolitical and diplomatic front, the FIFA World Cup tournament has been providing ample drama,

16:14lots of surprises, and, of course, unforgettable moments. Our Jakob Janis refreshes our memories

16:19now on the five biggest moments of the very first week.

16:24Skip the standard scorelines. The opening tournament round has delivered pure drama,

16:29historic records, and unbelievable spectacles. And your reporter wanted to look at the top five

16:34group stage champions. It's a bit subjective, but these five are completely undeniable.

16:39Let's start with number five. Who is the strongest team? Following a clinical opening round,

16:46France looks like the absolute frontrunner, leaping ahead of Spain, who unexpectedly drew against

16:51newcomers Cape Verde. Also, a brace from Real Madrid star, Kylian Mbappe, has firmly fueled French

16:58optimism. Number four. When it comes to the best individual performance, it has to be Lionel Messi.

17:05Do you remember that in 2018, Pundits claimed it was his final World Cup match? Now we are eight

17:11years later, and his 38-year-old icon stunned the world with an opening hat-trick, matching

17:17Miloslav Klose's 16-goal record. So let's be honest, his legendary status remains completely unmatched.

17:23And number three. The tournament's biggest disappointment goes to Messi's nemesis,

17:28Cristiano Ronaldo. He already made history playing against Congo, matching Messi's record of playing

17:33in six World Cups. However, what followed highly disappointed Portuguese fans? With no goals,

17:39no successful dribbles, and two missed clear opportunities, it is simply not Di Ronaldo we

17:45remember. And here goes number two. A moving display followed Germany's dominant 7-1 triumph

17:51over debutants Curaçao. And at full-time, German stars Jonathan Tarr and Felix Nemecher joined hands

17:58with the opposing players for a pitch-side prayer, offering a testament of their shared faith. So

18:03maybe football unites after all. Finally, number one. And Norway's ultimate fan culture. After 28 years

18:11away, they returned in style, leading a group with France and Senegal after beating Iraq 4-1.

18:17And alongside Erling Haaland's brace, their passionate supporters floated social media, bringing a vibrant

18:24Viking spirit to the local stadiums. And with a massive number of games still left to play, this

18:29tournament is only just heating up. So if you missed any of these incredible moments, make sure you stay

18:34glued for all the upcoming matches.

18:41Jakob Janis reporting for us there. And for more news on the FIFA World Cup or any stories breaking

18:46across Europe, including the sizzling temperatures that are creeping back just weeks after a deadly

18:51heatwave grips the continent, you can always visit our website, yournews.com. But that brings this

18:56edition of Europe Today to an end. Thank you so much for spending your Friday morning with us.

19:01Do get in touch with any questions or comments. Our email address is europetoday at euronews.com.

19:06But in the meantime, take care and see you soon on your own news.

EU leaders debate Ukraine as Costa opens diplomatic channel with Kremlin

Category

Transcript

Recommended