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Europe Today: il premier lettone Kulbergs a Euronews, Rubio incontra Lavrov
Andris Kulbergs è premier lettone da maggio, dopo la caduta del governo per i droni fuori rotta. Parla a Euronews mentre il segretario di Stato USA Marco Rubio vede il ministro russo Sergey Lavrov per chiudere la guerra in Ucraina.
ALTRE INFORMAZIONI : http://it.euronews.com/2026/07/23/europe-today-il-premier-lettone-kulbergs-a-euronews-rubio-incontra-lavrov
Abbonati, euronews è disponibile in 12 lingue.
Andris Kulbergs è premier lettone da maggio, dopo la caduta del governo per i droni fuori rotta. Parla a Euronews mentre il segretario di Stato USA Marco Rubio vede il ministro russo Sergey Lavrov per chiudere la guerra in Ucraina.
ALTRE INFORMAZIONI : http://it.euronews.com/2026/07/23/europe-today-il-premier-lettone-kulbergs-a-euronews-rubio-incontra-lavrov
Abbonati, euronews è disponibile in 12 lingue.
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00:14Buongiorno, it's Thursday the 23rd of July, I'm Maret Gwyn and you're watching Europe Today,
00:21Euronews' morning show broadcast live here from Brussels.
00:25Coming up today, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said he will discuss the war in
00:31Ukraine with the Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov when they meet in the Philippines
00:36later today.
00:38U.S. broker talks between Kyiv and Moscow have stalled but Rubio says there may be, quote,
00:44new conditions to bring both sides back to the table.
00:48We'll bring you more details.
00:50In other news, the European Commission has said it is preparing to accept new U.S. tariffs
00:55in the coming days as long as they do not exceed the 15% cap agreed under the EU-U
01:02.S. trade deal
01:03sealed a year ago.
01:05Trump is expected to announce fresh levies on goods allegedly made with forced labour.
01:10and the U.S. has signed a landmark nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia expected to allow the
01:17Gulf country to develop its own civilian nuclear programme.
01:22The U.S. Energy Department has described the deal as a peaceful cooperation agreement that
01:28will benefit American companies.
01:29But we start this morning in Latvia.
01:34Andrus Kulberg became the Baltic country's Prime Minister in May after the previous coalition
01:39government collapsed over its handling of stray drones.
01:43Latvia is, of course, one of NATO's frontline states bordering Russia on Europe's eastern
01:49flank and plays a leading role in supporting Ukraine.
01:53And Prime Minister Andrus Kulberg joins us live now from Riga.
01:58Prime Minister, good morning.
02:00Really good to have you with us on the show.
02:03Good morning, Brussels.
02:04Yesterday, your armed forces in Latvia fired a warning shot and used tear gas to prevent
02:12migrants from crossing from Belarus.
02:15Do you believe, Prime Minister, that Minsk and Moscow are instrumentalising these migrants
02:21in order to destabilise your country?
02:24I do not believe.
02:26I am sure.
02:27This happens since 2021.
02:29We're being tested, not just us.
02:32This moment, it is us.
02:34It is any given moment.
02:35It is our neighbours, Lithuania, Estonia, Finland or Poland.
02:39Any of us are tested.
02:41This is a hybrid threat.
02:42This is a war threat.
02:43That's what Russia does.
02:45This is for sure because we can see that it is not just asylum seekers, what somebody might
02:51think of.
02:52They are really men, 18 to 25, with criminal past, with all given visas from Belarus.
03:01This is all organised from the top level of Russian mob as well.
03:06So this is an organised threat towards us to find a weak link.
03:11And we all have to do all the measures, take all the measures to prevent that.
03:15And why, Prime Minister, do you think that this is intensifying now?
03:19Why is Putin deciding to target Latvia in this hybrid war at this moment?
03:27Because he's losing in Ukraine.
03:29Simple.
03:29He needs to take attention somewhere else and have this action.
03:35Prime Minister, I want to move on to talk about drones because the previous governments
03:40there in Latvia collapse amid criticism over its handling of incursions.
03:44What are you and your government doing differently to ensure Latvia is better prepared and protected
03:51against this threat?
03:52We're not simple.
03:54We're talking the truth.
03:55We're not giving any anticipations which cannot be met.
03:59We immediately have, I appointed the defence minister, professional, professional, not just
04:06from Latvia, but from the field in Ukraine, who has clear knowledge, clear experience of
04:12warfare, what is happening in Ukraine.
04:14So getting the best of the best solution for us.
04:18So we are, we signed a drone deal with Zelensky.
04:21This gives us access to the Ukrainian know-how and implement the umbrella for our skies in the
04:28best possible way.
04:29Do you think that the EU more broadly is moving quick enough on this?
04:34Because we know that this is a threat across the eastern flank.
04:37We know that the European Commission here talking about a drone wall.
04:41Are you confident that those European initiatives will also work?
04:45They will work, but they have to be much faster in speed.
04:49You pointed it out really correctly.
04:51We are not up to speed.
04:53We are not just Latvia.
04:55We're investing 5%, above 5%, actually 6%, above 6% in our defence, clear defence, not
05:02some buildings, real defence.
05:04But that is even not enough for the outside of European border, so eastern flank.
05:09We're defending all Europe, not just Latvia.
05:11So this is a matter which has to be whole Europe's matter for the defence.
05:15And this is an important point where we all have to be united.
05:19And, Prime Minister, when it comes to supporting Ukraine, obviously squeezing Moscow's war chest
05:25is very important.
05:26Yet we have now Greece blocking the latest package of EU sanctions against Russia as it seeks an
05:34exemption from the ban on Russian LNG.
05:37Does that frustrate you?
05:40Well, I've been quite vocal about it also in my speeches in our closed loop as well of the leaders.
05:48We have to understand what is the purpose of the sanctions?
05:52Why we are doing that?
05:53Why are we supporting Ukraine?
05:55This is number one question prior to anything else.
05:58Do we want Ukraine to win?
06:00Do we want to support Ukraine so that the bully gets its peace?
06:05Or what do we want?
06:06Or we want to earn money?
06:08So there's a choice.
06:10It's not both.
06:11So the sanctions have to be implemented.
06:14But above all, the best sanctions that work today are the long-range Ukrainian sanctions
06:21deep into the Russian heart, which is gas infrastructure, petrol station infrastructure.
06:27That is the biggest pride what Russia has.
06:30That's their only asset, is selling gas.
06:32Now, the pump versus Putin's propaganda is working because the pump is winning.
06:39The pump where people cannot put their gas in their cars.
06:43That is the deepest sanction and the deepest signal to the whole society.
06:48The latest sanctions package was also meant to include a full EU entry ban on Russian soldiers.
06:54Are you disappointed that this has been watered down in these negotiations?
07:00I am.
07:01I am.
07:02Because, well, first of all, this is sanction package 21.
07:06We should have done it in the first year, not in the fifth year.
07:10We're waiting.
07:11We're doing all that.
07:13Let's see how it works.
07:15No.
07:16If we want to win, we have to give it.
07:18Where was it?
07:18Remember, what happened in the first year?
07:20We said, oh, no, don't shoot over the border.
07:23It's going to cause the chaos.
07:24It's going to cause...
07:25What happened?
07:26Nothing much has happened, but the escalation with so many Ukrainians had to die just because
07:32we did not take the decision timely enough.
07:36So I think it's all in all our interests just to finally unite, push it through and give
07:43the Ukrainians the momentum to use the momentum what they have now.
07:46Okay.
07:47Prime Minister Andres Kulbergs, that's all we have time for, I'm afraid, but thank you
07:50so much for joining us.
07:52And we hope to see you again soon on Europe Today.
07:56Now we're moving on.
07:57The annual NATO summit earlier this month was hailed as a step towards a more balanced
08:03US-European relationship.
08:05It also reconfirmed Russia as an ongoing threat to the alliance.
08:10Today, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio is meeting Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov
08:15to discuss ending the war in Ukraine.
08:17This, as the war on Iran shows no signs of subsiding.
08:21To discuss all of this, I'm glad that we can say we can bring in our NATO correspondent,
08:26Shauna Murray, who is live for us from the NATO headquarters in Brussels.
08:31Good morning, Shauna.
08:32Great to see you.
08:33The Ankara summit earlier this month, I know you were there, proved quite a positive moment
08:38for Ukraine.
08:39Is there hope now that the US might do more to pressure Russia?
08:46Well, good morning, Mariette.
08:48Indeed, it was a step towards Europe really stepping up, bringing the establishment of
08:53NATO 3.0 with a lot of procurement, 50 billion euros in procurement for European capabilities.
09:00At the same time, as you mentioned there, it was a good day for Ukraine in Ankara because
09:05the United States allowed the licensing and manufacturing of crucial patriot defence systems.
09:11And today, Marco Rubio said he is meeting his counterpart, Sergei Lavrov.
09:15The jury's out as to whether this means that it's a definitive moment, because we heard also
09:21Marco Rubio saying that he won't be putting too much pressure on Lavrov.
09:24Lavrov also saying he's going to question Marco Rubio comments by US President Donald Trump,
09:29who said that the war in Ukraine is coming closer to an end.
09:33So to discuss this, I'm joined by Colonel Martin O'Donnell, who's the senior advisor
09:37to the Supreme Allied Commander of the European Forces here at NATO.
09:42Martin, that meeting today with Marco Rubio and Sergei Lavrov, do you hope something will
09:48come out of it because of what we've seen in terms of the signs of Ukraine doing much
09:52better on the battlefield and Russia really on the back foot?
09:56Well, I think Secretary Rubio has said the meeting will comprise of a number of different
10:01things.
10:01We'll see what comes out of it in terms of peace.
10:04Of course, we all hope for and really want to see peace in Ukraine.
10:07The important thing to note, though, is until that point comes, NATO will continue to support
10:12Ukraine.
10:12Yeah.
10:13But do you think that it's possible because of that signal that Donald Trump gave the
10:19Ukrainians that they can manufacture and license patriot defence missiles, that the United
10:24States is sort of a bit annoyed that Putin has not in any meaningful way come to the
10:29table when it comes to peace, that maybe the U.S. is giving a little bit more support
10:33to Ukraine than we've seen so far in the past couple of years?
10:36Yeah.
10:36I mean, President Trump has been pretty clear.
10:37He wants to bring about a peaceful end to that, to stop all of the stop all of the killing.
10:43So then you see responses like like you just described.
10:46And I think those are very, very positive, positive movements towards peace.
10:52And on the Iran issue, because we know that the war there has started apace.
10:56And in fact, it was at the NATO summit that Donald Trump decided that the memorandum of
10:59understanding was no more.
11:02And that's not a good sign for NATO, because we know that Donald Trump was outraged that
11:06allies didn't support him in the initial days of the war.
11:09What do you think allies can do in defending the United States if they want to?
11:14And also the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, because that's what everyone's very concerned
11:17about.
11:17Yes, I think it's not a good thing for anyone, right, that this is this is going on, that
11:22Iran has said, hey, we'll control the we'll control the Strait of Hormuz.
11:27All the allies agreed at the at the NATO summit that you talked about, that the Strait of Hormuz
11:32must remain free and free will.
11:34And if NATO can play a role, we said time and time again, we will.
11:37A lot of nations, bilaterally, multilaterally, have sent ships already to the region.
11:42Nations are also supporting the United States in other ways.
11:48Bulgaria, for example, their parliament met yet met yesterday, decided to support the
11:53basing of U.S. refuelers.
11:56That was followed by a statement from a U.S. European command saying that they will support
12:01Bulgaria with United States assets in the region if anybody thinks that they can threaten
12:06the United States or NATO.
12:08So these are strong reactions.
12:09They are indeed, because the Iranians have responded to that and said that that might
12:13bring Bulgaria as a party to the conflict.
12:16So there is a threat that this war in Iran could explode even further.
12:21Well, look, we saw that when Iran fired missiles towards Turkey, right, a NATO ally.
12:26Of course, NATO defended in all of those instances.
12:29And we will continue to defend against any threat posed by Iran or anyone else to this defensive
12:34alliance.
12:35Colonel McDonald, thank you very much for joining us this morning.
12:37And back to you in studio, Marad.
12:39Shauna, thank you so much.
12:40And thank you also to your guests there.
12:43Now, the European Commission is rumored to be preparing to announce its first fine on
12:48Google under the Digital Markets Act, which is a set of laws aiming to rein in the power
12:54of big tech.
12:55This announcement could come as early as today.
12:58The move, of course, risks escalating tensions with the U.S. administration, which is critical
13:03of the EU's digital rules.
13:05Well, for more, I'm joined in the studio by our correspondent, Luca Bertuzzi.
13:09Luca, tell us first, what do we know about this expected fine on Google?
13:14Yes, indeed, Marad.
13:16We have been hearing about this fine for a few days now.
13:20And it's rumored as imminent as early as today, even though we have no details about the total
13:27amount that is expected in the range of billions of euros.
13:32This is the culmination of a two-year investigation into Google and accusation that the tech company
13:41is favoring its own services in search results and preventing app developers to communicate
13:48with users outside its app store and with alternative payment system.
13:54Now, the European Commission has been criticized for being too slow in cracking down on big tech
14:00companies, taking years to conclude investigations only after the damage was already done and the
14:08competition squeezed out of the market.
14:11This is precisely what the Digital Markets Act is trying to avoid by bringing in a set of ex-ante
14:19rules meant to prevent Google and similar dominant companies to prevent European companies to compete
14:30in the same markets.
14:32This is the first investigation for Google, and it might be a testing bet for how Brussels
14:39is capable to make digital markets dominated by tech giants more contestable.
14:45Indeed.
14:46And also the timing of this one is quite notable because tensions with the US are quite high.
14:53So how could this impact that US-EU relationship?
14:56Well, indeed, there is never a dull moment in transatlantic relationship with Donald Trump in the
15:01White House, and as we heard before, Washington is preparing fresh tariffs as the current regime
15:10will expire in a few days.
15:13In the past, sanctioning American companies has proved controversial even inside the Commission,
15:19with senior officials working on a trade deal with the US pushing to delay fines.
15:25In this case, Brussels seems determined to go ahead nevertheless, but many will wonder how
15:31Washington will react.
15:33Indeed, Luca.
15:34Thank you for that.
15:35And as mentioned, that fine rumoured to be imminent.
15:40Now we're moving on.
15:42As efforts to enlarge the European Union gain political momentum, attention is now turning
15:47to how future enlargements will be financed.
15:50The cost of Montenegro's accession is already being debated as part of negotiations of the EU's
15:56next long-term budget.
15:58Meanwhile, some countries, including Germany, are pushing for a major overhaul of the bloc's
16:04enlargement rules.
16:06Euronews' Lena Roche sat down with Germany's Minister of State for Europe, Gunther Krichbaum,
16:11and started by asking him about Germany's recent proposal to allow candidate countries,
16:17notably Ukraine, to join the bloc in stages before completing all the required reforms.
16:25First of all, it is a common proposal from France and Germany, and we want to give more
16:31credibility to the enlargement process.
16:33What does it mean?
16:34At the moment, we are negotiating with all these countries since a couple of years, more
16:39than 10 years.
16:40So ordinary people, they lose the faith.
16:43That means, ah, well, they think this European Union, in reality, they don't want us.
16:48So, giving back more credibility means to organize it step by step by step, not like a high-jumping
16:57competition like it was done in the years, all the years before, because it is not helpful.
17:05When I talk about a high-jumping competition, it means the bear is laying on 1,50m.
17:10But in reality, this acquis communautaire, which is symbolizing this bear, is not any longer
17:18like in former times on 1,50m, but on 2m, because the whole acquis communautaire changed.
17:24And this means, it is more complicated for these concerned states to jump over it.
17:31In reality, it means to organize it step by step by step, not to substitute a full membership,
17:39but it is the case that we have to find a better approach and a better way to achieve it.
17:45And this is now why they propose this gradual integration.
17:50And this is important, because after I each step, ordinary people and citizens,
17:56they will recognize an added value.
17:59So, this is important and means to find here association membership,
18:05with a membership in the council, with a membership in the European parliament,
18:13with a status as an observer, and so they can join.
18:18And at the same moment, we are giving a message also to other countries, like Russia, like China,
18:24these states belong to us, to the European Union.
18:28And what about the costs of the EU enlargement?
18:31Can the EU net contributors even afford this anymore?
18:35Well, all this will be managed in the multi-annual financial framework.
18:41So, we have a budget in the European Union.
18:45And for this purpose, also, the money which is inside this financial framework, in this budget.
18:54So, of course, also in the future, it will be guaranteed.
19:00That was Euronews' Lena Roche, speaking to the German Minister of State for Europe,
19:05Gunther Kriegbaum, in Berlin.
19:07And that brings today's programme to a close.
19:10Thank you so much for your company again this morning.
19:12Remember, we also want to hear from you.
19:15Send us your feedback to Europe Today at Euronews.com.
19:18And in the meantime, take care and see you tomorrow.
19:50Thank you.
19:52Thank you.
19:55Thank you.
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