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Europe Today: Andris Kulbergs exkluzívan az Euronewsnak, Rubio Lavrovval találkozik
Andris Kulbergs májusban Lettország miniszterelnöke lett, miután a koalíció a drónbotrány miatt összeomlott. Exkluzívan nyilatkozik az Euronewsnak, miközben Marco Rubio amerikai külügyminiszter ma Szergej Lavrovval az ukrajnai háború lezárásáról tárgyal.
BŐVEBBEN : http://hu.euronews.com/2026/07/23/europe-today-andris-kulbergs-exkluziv-interjut-ad-az-euronewsnak-rubio-lavrovval-targyal
Iratkozzon fel: Az Euronews elérhető 12 nyelven
Andris Kulbergs májusban Lettország miniszterelnöke lett, miután a koalíció a drónbotrány miatt összeomlott. Exkluzívan nyilatkozik az Euronewsnak, miközben Marco Rubio amerikai külügyminiszter ma Szergej Lavrovval az ukrajnai háború lezárásáról tárgyal.
BŐVEBBEN : http://hu.euronews.com/2026/07/23/europe-today-andris-kulbergs-exkluziv-interjut-ad-az-euronewsnak-rubio-lavrovval-targyal
Iratkozzon fel: Az Euronews elérhető 12 nyelven
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00:14Good morning, it's Thursday the 23rd of July. I'm Maret Gwynn and you're watching Europe Today,
00:21Euronews' morning show broadcast live here from Brussels. Coming up today, US Secretary of State
00:28Marco Rubio has said he will discuss the war in Ukraine with the Russian Foreign Minister
00:33Sergei Lavrov when they meet in the Philippines later today. US broker talks between Kiev and
00:40Moscow have stalled, but Rubio says there may be, quote, new conditions to bring both sides back
00:47to the table. We'll bring you more details. In other news, the European Commission has said it
00:53is preparing to accept new US tariffs in the coming days as long as they do not exceed the 15
00:59% cap
01:00agreed under the EU-US trade deal sealed a year ago. Trump is expected to announce fresh levies
01:07on goods allegedly made with forced labor. And the US has signed a landmark nuclear deal with
01:15Saudi Arabia expected to allow the Gulf country to develop its own civilian nuclear program.
01:21The US Energy Department has described the deal as a peaceful cooperation agreement that will
01:28benefit American companies. But we start this morning in Latvia. Andrus Kulbergs became the
01:35Baltic country's prime minister in May after the previous coalition government collapsed over its
01:41handling of stray drones. Latvia is, of course, one of NATO's frontline states bordering Russia on
01:48Europe's eastern flank and plays a leading role in supporting Ukraine. And Prime Minister Andrus
01:55Kulbergs joins us live now from Riga. Prime Minister, good morning. Really good to have you with us on the
02:01show.
02:03Good morning, Brussels. Yesterday, your armed forces in Latvia fired a warning shot and used tear gas to prevent migrants
02:12from crossing from Belarus.
02:15Do you believe, Prime Minister, that Minsk and Moscow are instrumentalizing these migrants
02:21in order to destabilize your country?
02:24I do not believe. I'm sure. This happens since 2021. We're being tested, not just us. This moment, it is
02:33us.
02:34It is any given moment. It is our neighbors, Lithuania, Estonia, Finland or Poland. Any of us are tested.
02:41This is a hybrid threat. This is a war threat. That's what Russia does.
02:44This is for sure, because we can see that it is not just asylum seekers, what somebody might think of.
02:51They are really men, 18 to 25, with criminal past, with all given visas from Belarus.
03:01This is all organized from the top level of Russian mob as well.
03:05So this is an organized threat towards us to find a weak link. And we all have to do all
03:13the measures,
03:14take 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?
03:26Because he's losing in Ukraine. Simple. He 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 government there in Latvia collapsed
03:41amid criticism over its handling of incursions.
03:44What are you and your government doing differently to ensure Latvia is better prepared and protected against this threat?
03:52We're not simple. We're talking the truth. We're not giving any anticipations which cannot be met.
03:59We immediately have, I appointed the defense minister, a professional, a professional not just from Latvia,
04:07but from the field in Ukraine, who has clear knowledge, clear experience of warfare, what is happening in Ukraine.
04:14So getting the best of the best solution for us.
04:17So 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 best possible
04:28way.
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 are 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 defense.
05:01Clear defense.
05:02Not some buildings.
05:03Real defense.
05:04But that is even not enough for the outside of European border.
05:08So 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 defense.
05:15And this is an important point where we all have to be united.
05:20And, Prime Minister, when it comes to supporting Ukraine, obviously squeezing Moscow's war chest is very important.
05:26Yet we have now Greece blocking the latest package of EU sanctions against Russia as it seeks an exemption from
05:35the ban on Russian LNG.
05:36Does 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?
06:04Or 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 has to be implemented.
06:13But above all, the best sanctions that work today are the long-range Ukrainian sanctions deep into Russian heart,
06:23which is gas infrastructure, petrol station infrastructure.
06:26That is the biggest pride what Russia has.
06:30That's their only asset is selling gas.
06:32Now the pump versus propaganda, Putin's propaganda is working because the pump is winning.
06:39The pump where people cannot put their gas into their cars.
06:43That is the deepest sanction and the deepest signal to the whole society.
06:47The 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.
07:05We 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, if 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?
07:27Nothing much has happened.
07:28But the escalation with so many Ukrainians had to die just because we did not take the decision timely enough.
07:35So, I think it's in all our interests just to finally unite, push it through, and give the Ukrainians the
07:44momentum 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.
07:50But thank you so 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 U.S.-European relationship.
08:05It also reconfirmed Russia as an ongoing threat to the alliance.
08:10Today, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is meeting Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov to discuss ending the war
08:17in 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, Shauna Murray,
08:27who 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 for Ukraine.
08:39Is there hope now that the U.S. might do more to pressure Russia?
08:47Well, good morning, Murray.
08:48Indeed, it was a step towards Europe really stepping up, bringing the establishment of NATO 3.0 with a lot
08:55of 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 the United
09:05States allowed the licensing and manufacturing of crucial patriot defence systems.
09:10And 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 Marco Rubio saying
09:21that he won't be putting too much pressure on Lavrov.
09:24Lavrov also saying he's going to question Marco Rubio comments by U.S. President Donald Trump, who said that the
09:30war 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 to the Supreme Allied Commander of
09:39the European Forces here at NATO.
09:42Martin, that meeting today with Marco Rubio and Sergei Lavrov, do you hope something will come out of it because
09:48of what we've seen in terms of the signs of Ukraine doing much better on the battlefield and Russia really
09:55on the back foot?
09:56Well, I think Secretary Rubio has said the meeting will comprise of a number of different things.
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 Ukraine.
10:12Yeah, but do you think that it's possible because of that signal that Donald Trump gave the Ukrainians that they
10:20can manufacture and license patriot defence missiles,
10:23that the United States is sort of a bit annoyed that Putin has not in any meaningful way come to
10:29the table when it comes to peace,
10:30that maybe the U.S. is giving a little bit more support in Ukraine than we've seen so far in
10:34the past couple of years?
10:36Yeah, I mean, President Trump has been pretty clear.
10:37He wants to bring about a peaceful end to that, to stop all of the killings.
10:43So then you see responses like you just described.
10:46And I think those are very, very positive movements towards peace.
10:52On 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 Understanding was no
11:01more,
11:02that's not a good sign for NATO, because we know that Donald Trump was outraged
11:05that allies didn't support him in the initial days of the war.
11:08What do you think allies can do in defending the United States if they want to,
11:14and also the reopening of the Strait of Rome was, because that's what everyone's very concerned about?
11:17Yes, I think it's not a good thing for anyone, right, that this is going on,
11:22that Iran has said, hey, we'll control the Strait of Hormuz.
11:27All the allies agreed at the NATO summit that you talked about that the Strait of Hormuz must remain free,
11:33and free it will.
11:34And if NATO can play a role, we've said time and time again we will.
11:37A lot of nations, bilaterally, multilaterally, have sent ships already to the region.
11:43Nations are also supporting the United States in other ways.
11:48Bulgaria, for example, their parliament met yesterday, decided to support the basing of U.S. refuelers.
11:56That was followed by a statement from a U.S.-European command saying that they will support Bulgaria
12:02with the United States assets in the region if anybody thinks that they can threaten the United States or NATO.
12:07So these are strong reactions.
12:09They are indeed, but the Iranians have responded to that and said that that might bring Bulgaria as a party
12:15to 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, a NATO ally.
12:26Of course, NATO defended in all of those instances, and we will continue to defend against any threat posed by
12:32Iran or anyone else to this defensive alliance.
12:35Colonel Mark Donald, thank you very much for joining us this morning.
12:37And back to you in studio, Marad.
12:39Shauna, thank you so much, and thank you also to your guests there.
12:43Now, the European Commission is rumoured to be preparing to announce its first fine on Google under the Digital Markets
12:51Act,
12:51which is a set of laws aiming to rein in the power of 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 of 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, Maret.
13:16We have been hearing about this fine for a few days now, and it's rumoured as imminent as early as
13:22today,
13:23even though we have no details about the total amount that is expected in the range of billions of euros.
13:31This is the culmination of a two-year investigation into Google and accusation that the tech company is favouring its
13:42own services in search results
13:45and preventing app developers to communicate with users outside its app store and with alternative payment system.
13:53Now, the European Commission has been criticised for being too slow in cracking down on big tech companies,
14:01taking years to conclude investigations only after the damage was already done and the competition 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
14:25to prevent European companies to compete in the same markets.
14:31This is the first investigation for Google, and it might be a testing bet for how Brussels is capable to
14:40make digital markets dominated by tech giants more contestable.
14:45Indeed, and 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 White House.
15:02And as we heard before, Washington is preparing fresh tariffs as the current regime will 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.
15:24In this case, Brussels seems determined to go ahead nevertheless, but many will wonder how Washington will react.
15:33Indeed, Luca, thank you for that.
15:35And as mentioned, that fine rumoured to be imminent.
15:40Now we're moving on.
15:41As efforts to enlarge the European Union gain political momentum,
15:46attention is now turning to 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 next long-term budget.
15:58Meanwhile, some countries, including Germany, are pushing for a major overhaul of the bloc's enlargement 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, notably Ukraine,
16:18to join the bloc in stages before completing all the required reforms.
16:24First of all, it is a common proposal from France and Germany,
16:29and we want to give more credibility 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 than 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.
16:49So giving back more credibility means to organize it step by step by step,
16:56not like a high-jumping competition like it was done in the years, all the years before,
17:03because it is not helpful.
17:05When I talk about a high-jumping competition, it means the bear is laying on 1,50 m.
17:11But in reality, this acquis communautaire, which is symbolizing this bear,
17:17is not any longer like in former times on 1,50 m, but on 2 m,
17:21because 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.
17:58So this is important and means to find here association membership with a membership in the council,
18:09with a membership in the European Parliament, with 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.
18:27And 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.
18:40So we have a budget in the European Union.
18:45And for this purpose is also the money which is inside this financial framework in this budget.
18:55So, 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, Gunther 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.
19:50We'll see you tomorrow.
19:50We'll see you tomorrow.
19:52We'll see you tomorrow.
20:01You
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