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Europe Today: EPP-elnök Weber exkluzív interjút ad az Euronewsnak, von der Leyen Bakuban
Manfred Weber, az Európai Néppárt elnöke exkluzív interjút ad az Euronewsnak, miközben Ursula von der Leyen, az Európai Bizottság vezetője Azerbajdzsánba látogat, hogy növelje az EU befolyását egy hagyományosan orosz érdekszférának tartott régióban.
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Iratkozzon fel: Az Euronews elérhető 12 nyelven
Manfred Weber, az Európai Néppárt elnöke exkluzív interjút ad az Euronewsnak, miközben Ursula von der Leyen, az Európai Bizottság vezetője Azerbajdzsánba látogat, hogy növelje az EU befolyását egy hagyományosan orosz érdekszférának tartott régióban.
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Iratkozzon fel: Az Euronews elérhető 12 nyelven
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NewsTranscript
00:14Good morning, it is Wednesday the 1st of July. I'm Maeve McMahon and this is Europe Today.
00:20Your daily update of European news and analysis, live here on Euronews.
00:25Coming up from roads melting, tram tracks buckling to mounting deaths and heat stress,
00:30Europe's heatwave is intensifying. This as a deal to permanently end the war in the Middle East
00:35and resolve the energy crisis remains elusive. For the view from the European Parliament's
00:40biggest and most powerful political group, we'll be joined exclusively here on set by
00:44the President of the European People's Party, Manfred Weber. Plus, Ireland takes over the
00:49rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union today. For the next six months,
00:54the Irish government will chair 280 meetings and help steer the Union's legislative agenda.
01:00We'll be crossing live to Dublin Castle to speak to Ireland's European Affairs Minister Thomas
01:04Byrne, where Ukraine's President Zelenskyy has also arrived today for the ceremony.
01:09And in an attempt to stop the desertification of Europe's high streets,
01:12the EU will from today impose a three euro fee on small parcels from China,
01:18mainly platforms such as Sheen and Teemu. The aim, of course, is to curb the flow of cheap
01:23imports and encourage consumers to think twice about how they shop. But first, Europe's deadly
01:29heatwave has broken records in the east of the continent. And although millions of northern and
01:34southern Europeans are enjoying some fresh air this week, temperatures are set to rise this weekend,
01:40putting infrastructure and public services under increasing strain. And the issue is also becoming
01:45increasingly political. We can debrief now here on set with our Europe editor, Maria Tadeo.
01:50Good morning, Maria. Just tell us, what is the latest on the temperatures front and also on the
01:54political debate around it?
01:55Well, certainly. Good morning, Maeve. Because it is political, it's about the politics of climate,
01:59but also the politics around policy when it comes to the Green Deal. And as you say,
02:05when you look at the temperatures, they are going up again. They will be picking up in the Iberian
02:10Peninsula, in France, here too, in Belgium, parts of Germany, Switzerland. So we see now going into
02:16the weekend, we're looking at around 30 degrees Celsius. Of course, the big question now, and this
02:21is a key matter, it's not a trivial question, is whether this heatwave, this pickup in temperatures
02:27would look similar in intensity and length compared to the one that we just came out from on June 21st.
02:34I remember we had almost seven days of temperatures that smashed records, but also put a lot of strain,
02:41under strain, public transportation and also health care. When you look at the reality of this,
02:46this is not a trivial matter, and this is not a question of, well, it's summer, so obviously the temperatures
02:51will go up. The figures show us that from June 21st until now, there was an excess death rate of
02:571,300
02:57people. So this has become a real question of public health. What the experts also suggest is that when you
03:04look
03:04at heatwaves, they are becoming more pronounced, but also more regular. And a lot of this, to go back to
03:10an
03:10initial point, which is the politics around this, the idea of very hot summers, the air conditioning, again,
03:16that has crystallized a debate among those who say there is a necessity now in Europe. These temperatures will
03:22become the new normal. And there is also a question of comfort, the idea of mass installation of air
03:28conditioning, using it more. Remember, for many years, it was vilified in Europe to install air
03:33conditions all over the place. It's not a concept that is very natural, organic for Europeans versus
03:39those who now say, if you believe the way to fix these temperatures. Again, I go back and point to
03:45Teresa Rivera, for example. She is the executive vice president of the commission, but also a very
03:49outspoken European climate advocate. She says, if you believe the way to deal with this is just to
03:54install AC, there is a fundamental issue. And all of that also picks up on the question
03:59of the Green Deal. The Europeans made a pledge in 2019 to cut emissions. The question now is,
04:05can this Green Deal, as it was created, and obviously, to see the benefits of it, there will
04:10be time, money that will have to be invested. Can it be sustained? Or ultimately, we're going into
04:15dismantling of it. And this heat wave that we've seen this summer may accelerate that process.
04:20Okay, Maria Steyer, you're better. Thank you so much for that analysis. And now for his view on all of
04:25this, coming up, we'll be joined by Manfred Weber, the president of the European People's Party,
04:30Europe's largest political group, German member of the CSU. Manfred Weber has been a member of the
04:36European Parliament since 2004, and is one of the European Parliament's most influential and most
04:42powerful politicians. So obviously, he's a very busy man. So we're thrilled that you made it here
04:45to the Europe Today set. Welcome. Thank you so much. Good morning. Great to have you with us.
04:49Look, this heat wave that we're seeing, is that just normal June weather, in your view? Or is it
04:54climate change? Is it global warming? Well, that's up to the scientists and experts to assess
04:58this. It's not up to the politicians. We see an unnormal situation, that's clear. And we face
05:02a new reality on European level. And we have to prepare for this. So on the one hand, I'm quite
05:08proud as an European politician that we did the Green Deal, that we are going forward, that Europe was
05:12the continent who made the Paris Agreement. You remember when we had a global agreement on the fight
05:17against climate change, we made it possible. So Europe showed leadership. But your party has been
05:22tinkering away at the Green Deal, rolling back parts of the Green Deal.
05:26My party is the Ursula von der Leyen party. My party is the party who did the Green Deal in
05:30the last
05:30mandate. And we fully support the Green Deal. It's our responsibility in today's world to deliver
05:36on these aspects. What we are asking for is to be reasonable in the business aspect. And that is
05:41what we have. We cannot kill our industry due to climate change. That is what we are asking for.
05:45So we need a common understanding to bring things in balance. That's always EPP approach.
05:51And now jeopardizing the debate, of course, is this conversation over air con, whether to invest
05:55in air conditioning. Where is your view here? Is it a necessity or a luxury?
06:00It's a necessity. No doubt about this. You know, in former times, it was no question at all that we
06:05need heating in the north of Europe because it's colder there. There's no question. And today,
06:10if climate change, if hotter temperatures are arriving, we need also air conditioning. So it's a
06:15question of practical needs and to invest there, the European Union, by the way.
06:19Even though the scientists would argue that would go against the goals of the climate plan?
06:22I don't see it like this, you know, especially on air conditioning. We have the big advantage
06:26that if you also combine it with photovoltaics or with solar panels, then you can easily use
06:33the solar energy for air conditioning. So that's not a contradiction. We have that way towards
06:39green, sustainable energy production in Europe to be not anymore depending on the street of
06:44Hormuz, to use all the other debate of the last weeks, that we are ready for the future
06:48and then we can challenge this.
06:51So you're clearly going against it. Trisa Ribera, do you have your air con on in your office today?
06:55I think so. I hope so that it works, yes.
06:57Okay. Well, many, of course, Europeans do not because they can't afford it. But let's move from
07:00climate to migration. The parliament has just approved a law on these very controversial return
07:06hubs. Should EU money be spent on these return hubs, Mr Weber?
07:10It must work. You know, in this moment of time, only 20% of the decisions that someone must leave
07:16the European Union is an illegal here. And not from a politician. It's from a judge. It's from an
07:22official service in the European Union. If someone is illegal, he has to leave the European
07:28Union. And only 20% are enforced in this moment.
07:30And who should pay for these return hubs?
07:32Well, a return hub is only one part of a big legislation. And just to remind everyone, we were
07:37fighting about this migration thing for more than 10 years in Europe. It created a lot of problems and
07:44also created a lot of right extreme parties. And now I am proud as European politician that I can tell
07:49people that we have now a solution, that 25 member states agreed, that all center parties agreed. We do it
07:55together. And we have an answer on this. We enforce it. And the main message is the state decides who
07:59is arriving and not the smugglers in the Mediterranean Sea.
08:02And which countries will these return hubs be in?
08:04Well, that's it's now up to the member states. So they have the chance.
08:07What's your preference?
08:08It's not up to us on the European level to decide about this. We have partners in Africa,
08:12in the Middle East where we can work with, but it's up now to the colleagues to coordinate and to
08:16find partners. And it's not a must, you know, if France and other countries are not using this
08:22option, then it's fine. But we have to enforce it. It must work.
08:25And what you mentioned, France, what about Spain, though? This week, of course, big news with Pedro
08:29Sanchez saying that one million people have applied for his program for undocumented migrants.
08:34He argues that without immigration, Spain would lose 19% of its GDP by 2050. Does he have a point?
08:41Well, Europe needs migration and legal migration. We need workers for our care system, for example.
08:48So that's obvious.
08:49So do you support his plan?
08:50Well, the key question is who is invited to stay here. And if you legalize all illegals
08:55who are today in Spain, that's not the part of the persons and personalities we need. We need
08:59we need qualified people who can really contribute to our system. And that is not happening in Spain.
09:04These people, though, will contribute.
09:06By the way, if we speak about a number of above one million people, sorry, that's not normal
09:12migration. That's not normal migration when you have such a massive increase.
09:16But these people are already in the country working illegally. They're undocumented.
09:20So now if they become legal, they'll contribute.
09:23That's up to the authorities to assess this. Again, nothing against legal migration. But again,
09:27if you speak about one million in a few weeks to be legalized, that's not a normal procedure.
09:33I hope that this is not a normal procedure. That's why I'm not in favor of this. And that
09:37has also impact to the others. So if Spain is doing it, they have the right of freedom of movement.
09:41They can go to France, they can go to Belgium, they can go to Poland.
09:45Are these people a threat, do you think?
09:46That's why it is an issue for all of us. And that's why I would expect that also leaders speak
09:50about this kind of massive one million people, massive legalization. That's an issue for Europe.
09:55Another big issue for Europe, China. We saw those very delicate talks this Monday night
10:00between Mara Sefkovic and his counterpart from Commerce. They put October now as a deadline.
10:05Is this just to avoid confrontation with China?
10:07No, we have a totally fundamentally change of our approach to China. Stop naivety. We need
10:13a level playing field where we clarify that subsidies cannot be part of a free market economy perspective.
10:19And I'm also sure that we have to talk about the digital infrastructure of Europe,
10:22for example, the 6G infrastructure of tomorrow, though, if we invest in digital infrastructure,
10:27must be China free. So I think we have to be clear that the new world is arriving,
10:31and China must understand this.
10:33And which team are you on here? Team Ursula von der Leyen or Team Friedrich Merz?
10:36They have completely different views vis-a-vis China.
10:38We also have Team Emmanuel Macron. We have different teams in Europe.
10:41I would ask for one team, and I'm on the side of Sefkovic in Europe,
10:45to defend our European interests. Stop naivety. That's the main message.
10:49Continue to do business, no problem on this, but stop naivety.
10:52What if there's no deal, though, by October?
10:54Well, then we are entering into a phase of a conflict. And we have to be clear that European
11:00Union, we speak about 450 million consumers. We are strong. We are economically the world power
11:05of this world.
11:06And does conflict mean trade war, in your view?
11:08I don't ask for it. I don't look for a kind of conflict. But the Chinese must understand that
11:16the overcapacities, again, with solar panels, they did it already, to occupy the global market,
11:21and the same want to do on the electric vehicles, on the electric cars. And we cannot allow this.
11:26We are the continent of trading. We are the continent of free market. No question on this,
11:30but it must be fair, and it must be level playing field.
11:33And just on that point, you mentioned trade. You finally have the trade deal over the line
11:36with the United States. But just last week, we heard that announcement that President Trump
11:40might introduce tariffs because of the digital taxes Europe's imposing on the Americans.
11:44What does that mean, then, for the deal that you supported?
11:47Well, I'm a man of transatlantic cooperation. I love to work together with the Americans.
11:52The current president is a special one. Everybody knows it. But we have now the deal. We have
11:56agreed on it. Europe delivered, as we promised it. And the EPP party was the adult in the room.
12:01You know, others were playing on this. We always said from the very first moment on that our
12:05business needs certainty, needs stability now in the trade relationship with America. That's why
12:09good that we have it now. And if we continue the fight, then I should also say, let's stand up
12:15as
12:15Europeans and be proud again. 450 million consumers means also for America that we are the biggest
12:20external market for them. So let's use this power.
12:23And if he makes good on these new tariffs, will you pull out of the deal, the Tunbir deal?
12:27We want to keep the deal. And I would advise us not to react on every tweet and every message
12:32from
12:33Donald Trump, because in every morning show, we speak about Trump. And that is exactly what he
12:37wants to do. Do you think he's just bluffing?
12:39Let's talk about us. Let's talk about our strengths and our values, what we stand for.
12:43And especially on the trade issue, you know, we have now Australia, we have New Zealand,
12:46we have Mexico, we have Japan, we have Mercosur now in place. Enforced. I'm happy. My party was
12:52always a party of free trade. And we believe that having with China and also with America more
12:56problems, you have to look for others who are rule-based, who love to work together, rule-based
13:01and value-based. And that's why there's a huge opportunity now for the biggest market in the
13:05world. And that is European Union. And as you say, we need to focus on ourselves,
13:09focus on Europeans. What's the new mood now in Europe regarding the new Hungarian head of stage,
13:13Peter Mayer? Well, I visited him two years ago when he entered into European politics,
13:19European Parliament. His teaser party first time was elected in Hungary. And I invited him to join
13:26the EPP group in the European Parliament. He accepted this. And he repaid this investment of
13:31trust now with a huge success. You know, last week when we had our gathering of the EPP leaders with
13:37Merz and all the colleagues, Peter Mojo was the first time inside of the EPP family being present.
13:42And it was a moment of big strength and also pride because the Hungarian voice is back on the European
13:48level. And will it be back when it comes to Ukraine? Well, he already committed, you know,
13:5290 billion. He approved it. He gave green light. And also the first chapters on the negotiations now,
13:57he already agreed. He already gave green light. So we see the fundamental change now.
14:02Orban is gone and all right extreme, all right populists in Europe have a big problem because
14:05their hero lost elections against young EPP leader, Peter Mojo. And just on a lighter note,
14:11I'm sure you've been watching the World Cup. The Mannschaft is out. True, true. And I have
14:16now as a chairman, I have to consider now what I'm looking for and what I'm supporting for. So we
14:20still have a lot of European teams being present there. Who are you supporting?
14:24And let's see, let's see how they perform and wish them all the best. Is it time for Julian Nagelsmann
14:30to
14:30stand aside? Well, losing is never a good thing. And in this moment of time,
14:37especially in this game, we saw a lack of engagement. I respect every individual player,
14:42but there was a lack of engagement. And that's why it has to, it has to be discussed.
14:45And now that Germany's out, now that Germany's out, who, Manfred Weber, will you support?
14:50Hard question, hard question. I keep neutrality in this moment of time.
14:55Okay. Thank you so much, Manfred Weber, our guest here on Europe Today for joining us.
14:59And speaking of neutrality, moving on, an EU member since 1973,
15:03Ireland takes over the rotating presidency of the European Union today for the next
15:07six months. Ukraine's President Zelensky has arrived in Dublin for the symbolic ceremony that
15:12will take place today in Dublin Castle. For more, we can straight head over to the castle and bring
15:17in the Irish Minister for European Affairs, Thomas Byrne. Good morning, Minister. So lovely to have you
15:21on Europe Today today. Just tell us, President Zelensky has arrived for the proceedings. This is the first
15:26surprise, if you like, of the presidency. Yeah, well, we're delighted that President Zelensky is
15:32here. President Costa of the European Council will be here as well. And this will be a ceremony,
15:36I suppose, to mark the opening day. It's not just ceremonial. We have about 20 meetings of
15:41working parties in Brussels happening today. I've already got calls from senior MEPs on particular
15:46files this morning. So we're starting with action. We're starting straight into it. And it's a very
15:53exciting moment for all of us here in the Irish system. It's a generational moment with some
15:58really important files on enlargement when you mention Ukraine, but also the MFF and the One
16:03Market Roadmap as well. These are key files for Ireland, but also for Europe. Just on Ukraine,
16:09how will you advance the talks on their membership into the EU over the next six months?
16:14Well, look, we've already achieved a lot now at the end of the Cyprus presidency, and I want to pay
16:17tribute to them for that. So our ambition is to open more clusters and negotiations
16:22with Ukraine. And so we're already working on that. We've had discussions yesterday. We've
16:27continued to have discussions this week to see how far we can go to have an intergovernmental
16:32conference this month. Obviously, all of the member states have to agree to that. And we'll have to
16:37work really, really hard to get the member states to come to that view. So look, that's a serious
16:43work in progress at the moment. And of course, Mr. Brayne, this presidency comes just as the EU was
16:47seriously lagging behind the US and China. How will you help make the EU more competitive
16:51over the next six months?
16:54Well, I think the One Market Roadmap sets out a long series of actions that we should
16:59be implementing this year, much of which has to be done during the Irish presidency.
17:04That will make us more competitive, more resilient, and make it easier to do business in Ireland.
17:09On my agenda, the simplification agenda is really important to make it cheaper to do business,
17:14but also protecting the basic values that make us Europeans. But we have other items such as the
17:19Savings and Investment Act, the EU Inc proposal, and that long list on the roadmap. So our entire
17:25system is geared to trying to get agreement among the member states. It's not all on us. Member states
17:31have to agree, and the European Parliament has to agree as well. But if we can do this, I think
17:36it will
17:36be generational, it will be really important, and a significant boost to the European economy.
17:40And just finally, what would a successful presidency look like to you? And are Irish people as enthusiastic
17:46as you today?
17:48I think Irish people are always very proud when we take over the presidency of the European Union.
17:52Irish people are very supportive of the European Union, and they know the benefits that the European
17:57Union has given to peace and economic prosperity, not just in Ireland, but across the European Union.
18:03So I think there's a huge awareness in Ireland today of what's happening. And I think Irish people
18:07will have a lot of goodwill towards government and different servants who will be doing a huge
18:11amount of the work in meetings in Brussels and in Dublin. But today, it's a day to start the
18:16work, but also to mark the occasion.
18:19Okay. Minister Thomas Byrne, thank you so much for joining us there from Dublin Castle,
18:23as Dublin takes on that role as presiding over the EU Council for the next six months.
18:27And now moving on, after a trip to Turkey yesterday, just days ahead of the NATO summit, the EU Commission
18:33President, Ursula von der Leyen, has moved on to Azerbaijan today to build on EU influence
18:38in a region traditionally in Russia's orbit. For more on her ambitions, we can cross now to
18:43Baku and bring in your news correspondent, Nadira Tudor. Good morning, Nadira. Tell us more about her visit today.
18:50Well, this is a significant visit because it reflects just how strategically important the South Caucasus
18:55has become for the EU. President Ursula von der Leyen is set to hold talks with Azerbaijani President
19:01Ilham Aliyev. Discussions are expected to focus on four key areas. The first, to support the Azerbaijan-Armenian
19:07peace process. Second, to strengthen economic ties. Third, improving transport and trade links between
19:12Europe and Central Asia. And finally, to expand connectivity through the middle corridor. Now,
19:18the backdrop for these priorities is against Europe's changing geopolitical landscape. Since
19:23Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the EU has not been secret about its desire to diversify
19:30both its energy supplies and its trade routes. Currently, 16 European countries import gas from
19:35Azerbaijan to Italy, from Azerbaijan, Italy being the top importer. And as a consequence, the country
19:42has become increasingly important as a gas supplier and the middle corridor emerging as a key
19:47alternative trade route connecting Europe with Central Asia and China. And it's important to
19:53note that this is also von der Leyen's first visit to Azerbaijan since Azerbaijan and Armenia, the two
19:58neighbors, initial their landmark peace agreement. So one could deduct that this makes today's meetings as
20:04much about long-term regional stability as about energy and trade. The two leaders are expected to make
20:09joint statements later this afternoon. And just yesterday we saw the President von der Leyen,
20:15she was in Turkey with two EU commissioners. Tell us about that. Well, this visit is all part of a
20:21much broader
20:21week of EU diplomacy across the region. And while President von der Leyen is focusing on the South
20:27Caucasus, there are several senior European commissioners in Turkey for high-level talks covering things like
20:32security, trade, migration and the future of EU-Turkey relations. And expected discussions include
20:39modernizing the EU-Turkey customs union, regional security, migration cooperation and connectivity
20:46projects, all linking Europe with the Black Sea, the South Caucasus and Central Asia. And if we put
20:52everything into context, the visits show that European Union is looking at the region as one connected
20:58strategic neighborhood where energy, security, trade routes, defense cooperation and political
21:04stability are increasingly being seen as intertwined.
21:09Okay, Nadira Tudor, thank you so much there for that live broadcast from Baku. Now, earlier on Europe Today,
21:15we were joined by Manfred Weber, the president of the most influential and powerful political group in the
21:20European Parliament, that's the European People's Party. Our Europe editor Maria today was listening into that
21:25interview and joins me now for some analysis. Maria, what were your takeaways?
21:29Look, I think it's, well, first of all, a comprehensive interview that ultimately touched upon
21:34the main topics that are driving the political agenda in Europe, in which we've got to be honest,
21:39the EPP, so the Conservatives across Europe, now dominate the scene. They dominate the scene in Brussels
21:44and they nominate the scene across the different capitals in the European Council. So there has been a shift
21:50into more conservative positions from the European public itself. So to that extent, they play with
21:56an advantage over the rest. But I would argue the thing that to me struck out the most, and it
22:02is a
22:02real question to me for the rest of the year for the European Union, is China. What to do with
22:08the Chinese
22:09and the trade deficit that not only was a record last year, but if you look at the numbers so
22:14far this
22:14year, it seems that this will also be another record year when it comes to that gap between what
22:19the Chinese are selling and buying from the European Union. As it stands, every official,
22:23I think Manfred Weber was very clear about this too, they believe that it's simply not sustainable
22:27to continue going down this path. To me, what was interesting is the Commission has decided now to
22:32take some of the heat off and wait until October. We are also expecting new tools that will be created
22:37and announced in order to deal with China if they do not level this playing field. Of course,
22:42you could argue the European Union already has many trade tools that it could have implemented
22:46had it had the political courage to do it. And I say political because the data does show
22:51these deficits cannot continue. To me, what is interesting is out of this tree of Germans,
22:57the German Chancellor, the head of the Commission, and now Manfred Weber with the APP, he took a very
23:01strong line. You know, he said, we cannot kill our industry. And China now, that's a quote,
23:05is a serious problem for the European industry. And I particularly thought it's interesting when you said
23:09what happens after October. And he did say, ultimately, decisions in October will have to be made.
23:14Because of the EU having set a deadline, not triggered any countermeasures, decides to extend
23:20again this waiting period, it can only be interpreted as a sign of weakness. And Beijing will read it as
23:25such.
23:26Thank you so much for your analysis. And you can read, of course, more about that interview
23:30and all the other stories we're covering for you here on Euronews. You can check out Euronews.com.
23:35You can also reach out to us at Euronews.com with any of your thoughts or comments or queries.
23:41But that brings this edition of Europe Today. Thank you so much for your company,
23:44as always. Take care and see you very soon on Euronews.
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