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04:33Comisioner Valdez Dombrovskis, yesterday.
04:35And she started by asking him
04:36about this, about whether the EU would
04:38have to contemplate easing sanctions on
04:40Russian commodities, as the US and UK
04:43have done, to ease
04:44the impact of the energy crisis on
04:46Europeans.
04:48Well, we already
04:50saw back in 2022
04:52that Russia tried to use its
04:54fossil fuel supplies as a tool for
04:56blackmail and manipulation,
04:58and we paid a quite dear economic
05:00price for having this dependent
05:02in sea from
05:04Russia, so therefore there's no point
05:06going back to this. We have
05:08diversified our supplies. Our largest
05:10gas supply is now Norway.
05:12Our largest LNG supplier
05:14is US, and so on.
05:17So there's
05:19strategic decisions taken
05:20to move away completely
05:22from Russian oil and
05:24gas, and we have to follow it through.
05:26But you rule out, because this is very
05:28important, that by the winter, by
05:30Christmas, the temperature is going down,
05:32that the EU will not take any measures,
05:35easing sanctions on Russian
05:36energy at any level.
05:38Well, if anything, we need to
05:39strengthen sanctions against
05:41Russia, not ease, because
05:43actually Russia is a country
05:45benefiting from this conflict in
05:47the Middle East and those higher
05:48energy prices, getting substantial
05:50windfall profits. So we should not
05:53facilitate it further.
05:56And it's worth noting that already
05:58now we started the process of
06:00refilling our gas
06:03storages. Well, it's
06:04currently goes, so to say, within the
06:06historical range of this time
06:08of the year.
06:10That's something we, in any case,
06:12need to do. We need to prepare
06:13ourselves for next winter.
06:15But you don't feel blackouts?
06:16You don't fear that once again,
06:18as we talked about in 2022, there was
06:20a real fear that Europe would come
06:23to a halt. It will grind to a halt
06:24that the industry would not be able
06:26to operate because of a shortage
06:27of supplies.
06:28You don't expect that to be the
06:29case by the end of the year.
06:31No, we do not expect this to be
06:33the case now.
06:36Indeed, there was this risk back in
06:392022 or winter from 22 to 23.
06:42Exactly because we were dependent
06:44from Russian fossil fuel supplies.
06:46So we should not get back there.
06:48This week, the head of the Italian
06:50government sent a letter to the
06:51commission. By now, it's very clear
06:53that Georgia Maloney believes the
06:54commission is not taking her concerns
06:57seriously. She says that this is just
06:58as equally important energy to
07:00defense. What are you going to offer
07:02the Italian prime minister that is
07:04going to placate her anger?
07:05Because by now, it's clear they are
07:07not satisfied with the measures you
07:08provided.
07:09We are obviously now looking at
07:13policy options and also our fiscal
07:15policy response. But that's the main
07:18message in case remains that the support
07:20measures need to be temporary and
07:23targeted. The ones which are not
07:25sustaining or increasing demand for
07:27fossil fuels. So on one hand, not just
07:30to perpetuate higher energy demand and
07:33thus higher global energy prices because
07:36we are facing supply shock. So we cannot
07:39resolve it by stimulating demand. And
07:44second, we must keep in mind also more
07:47limited fiscal room of maneuver and also
07:52flexibilities already existing in our
07:54fiscal framework. We have a number of
07:55automatic stabilizers which can play out,
07:58which allows for, in a sense, certain
07:59fiscal buffer before even member states
08:02come with discretionary measures. But we
08:04are doing this assessment and preparing
08:06it.
08:06So you're listening to her concerns?
08:08Well, we certainly are listening to the
08:11concerns of member states and looking
08:13appropriate policy response.
08:17That was the European Commissioner for
08:19the Economy, Valdis Dombrovskis, speaking
08:22to Maria Tadeo. Now moving on, Hungarian
08:25Prime Minister Peter Magyar is pushing to
08:27revive the so-called Visegrad or V4
08:30group, which brings together Poland,
08:32Slovakia, the Czech Republic and
08:34Hungary. Magyar has even pitched
08:36expanding the group. Jakob Janis tells
08:39us more.
08:41Peter Magyar's first official foreign
08:43trip to Poland wrapped up yesterday. And
08:45now, when the diplomatic dust is
08:47settling, all eyes are now on the
08:49sudden resurrection of the group called
08:50Visegrad IV. And if you are a bit
08:53unsure what this shift actually means for
08:54Europe, or even what the group is about,
08:57let's break it down together.
09:00The V4 was set up in the early 1990s to
09:03guide these post-communist neighbors into
09:05the West. But beyond geography, Poland,
09:07Czechia, Slovakia and Hungary are bound by the
09:10same massive Central European automotive and
09:13manufacturing supply chains. But also a shared goal to protect billions in EU
09:17cohesion funding. And their most significant political impact came over 10 years ago in 2015, when their coordinated resistance forced
09:26Brussels to abandon mandatory migration quotas.
09:29And what's interesting, this is no longer the poor relation of Western Europe. Central Europe enters this new chapter with
09:37economic strength. Just look at the data. Last year, Poland led the continent with a booming 4% real household
09:44income growth, while Germany lagged at 0.6%. And Austria's household income even declined.
09:51And this wealth flip gives the region confidence.
09:54Magyar is even pitching a bold plan to merge the V4 with Austria, with reports suggesting Vienna is receptive to
10:01a Benelux-style alliance.
10:03But let's be realistic. Can this bloc actually deliver anything tangible?
10:07Critics point out that the V4 group has historically struggled to look beyond its own internal divisions.
10:13And in the past, cooperation was derailed by fears of revived Austrian hegemony.
10:18And even today, old bilateral disputes between neighbors like Slovakia and Hungary still cause friction.
10:24And acting as one voice in Brussels will not be seamless.
10:28And while the countries aim to cooperate on a regional energy and transport infrastructure,
10:33geopolitical fault lines remain.
10:35Hungary, Czechia and Slovakia, unlike Poland, are opting out of EU's 90 billion euro loan package for Ukraine.
10:41So will potential divisions stop this bloc from making a real impact?
10:46Only time will tell.
10:47But with Magyar finally in default, it turns out the three musketets were just waiting for their fourth.
10:59Now, for more on this, I'm joined by our Hungarian correspondent, Sándor Sýros.
11:03Sándor, good to see you.
11:05Tell us, what's Magyar's strategy here? What is he trying to achieve?
11:09Well, as mentioned, it was his first visit to Poland, and he had two messages.
11:15First of all, he said that he's conducting foreign trips in a very different way.
11:20It was a big show what he did.
11:22He went on a commercial plane, then he took the train.
11:27He did a lot of selfies on the streets of Warsaw.
11:30So it's a different feeling after Orbán.
11:33And the political message was that he wants to revive Polish-Hungarian ties, which were stuck during the Orbán era.
11:43There was a lot of diplomatic tensions because of Orbán's ties to Russia.
11:47And he wants to revive also the Visegrad IV, which is a key in Central European cooperation.
11:54In Warsaw, he also said that, you know, maybe this group should extend beyond these four countries, Hungary, Slovakia, Czechia,
12:02and Poland, to Austria, and to even further.
12:05Let's take a look of what he said.
12:07I am personally ready and consider it important to extend the cooperation of the Visegrad IV,
12:17whether with our Scandinavian friends or with Austria, Croatia, Slovenia, Romania, or the Western Balkan countries that have not yet
12:26joined the EU.
12:28The heart of Europe beats in Central Europe today.
12:36It's really ambitious, Sándor, but realistically, can this bloc become a powerful one also here in Brussels?
12:43We will see it in the coming years.
12:45The big problem for the Visegrad IV right now is that, you know, 10 years ago they had one major
12:51common topic, migration.
12:53They were fighting against the mandatory relocation quotas of the European Union.
12:58Now, you know, this issue is completely mainstream, and what connects these four countries is, you know, infrastructure, economy, business.
13:09And there is one thing that could potentially unite them is to fight against the Green Deal of the European
13:16Union
13:17and to preserve car industry, which is really strong in all of those countries.
13:22Okay, Sándor, we keep an eye out for that, of course.
13:25Thank you.
13:26Now, moving on, later today, the Mexican president, Claudia Sheinbaum, will receive the presidents of the European Commission and Council,
13:33Ursula von der Leyen and Antonio Costa, for the eighth EU-Mexico summit.
13:37They're expected to ink a revamped trade deal to replace the previous pact struck 25 years ago.
13:43It's set to slash tariffs on a range of goods, including agricultural products.
13:48Also in Mexico is Javi López, the European Parliament's vice president, who has been part of these negotiations.
13:54I spoke to him in an interview and started by asking him what the deal offers for both sides.
14:01First, after 10 years of negotiation and after 10 years without summits at the high level, that we will have
14:06it tomorrow,
14:08we are able to modernize the global agreement with Mexico after 25 years working with the current agreement.
14:16With this, we are doing more on trade, especially in predictable trade with high standards.
14:23But also, we are reinforcing our geopolitical alliance with one G20, a giant, culturally, demographically, economically.
14:32And in a world where all of the rest big actors are using trade as a coercive force,
14:42we are working for predictable trade agreements.
14:45So is it fair to say this agreement is more than anything a reaction against the unpredictability, perhaps, of Trump's
14:52America?
14:52We know both Mexico and the EU have been targeted by aggressive trade policies from the US.
14:59And is that going to work?
15:00Because some would look at the agreement that the EU has signed with the US, the trade agreement,
15:06and would say, well, actually, Trump is calling the shots.
15:09No, I think we are working in the right direction.
15:12We are working in the direction of diversification of our economic relations in the world, trying to reduce dependencies.
15:19Also, dependencies coming from the United States.
15:21This is the reality.
15:23We're risking our dependencies in trade, also in security.
15:27And on that, we are having a group, a mix of important association agreements.
15:32We have Mercosur, that it's a game changer with the region.
15:35We have the modernization of Mexico.
15:37And also, we will have India.
15:39And it's three big examples of this offensive foreign action, foreign policy that we are having.
15:46You mentioned Mercosur, and obviously, that was a big step forward.
15:49But could you argue also that the EU has been a little bit slow to deepen ties with Latin America?
15:56And we're now seeing, of course, President Trump trying to reassert his sphere of influence over the Western Hemisphere.
16:01Has the EU been a little bit too negligent in the relationship?
16:05It's true that it was during a lot of years not in the radar of the priorities of the EU.
16:10And we were extremely focused in our neighborhoods.
16:13Also, we had good reasons to do that.
16:14But at the same time, now, after the Ukraine war, I will say, but after the arrival of Trump, too,
16:21to the White House,
16:22we are forced to think more strategically and act more mature in the world.
16:27And our relations with Latin America, especially, are strategical relations.
16:31It's the biggest partner in the world where we can work together for a multilateral dialogue,
16:37working with the same agenda, climate change, gender equality, inclusive growth,
16:42also defending international law and the chapter of the United Nations.
16:48And on that, we are working with these association agreements that are key to reinforce and are real game changers
16:54in the region.
16:59Now, as the Cannes Film Festival draws to a close,
17:03the red carpet has this year become a battleground over politics, ideology and artistic freedom.
17:10Artists have been weighing in on issues from the war in Gaza to gender roles.
17:14A feud has also erupted over the influence of conservative billionaire Vincent Bolloré over Canal+, French cinema's biggest funder.
17:23For more, we can cross over to Cannes now and to Jada Yuan, a journalist and writer who is at
17:29the festival.
17:30Jada, great to see you and to have you with us on Europe Today.
17:32I guess politics always permeates into this festival.
17:37And I would say perhaps that this year has been no exception.
17:41Absolutely.
17:43It is one of the most political I've been at.
17:46I would say last year was also incredibly political.
17:52Robert De Niro came out in his opening speech called Trump, America's Philistine President.
17:57But the difference is that every single day when something screens and the Canal+, logo comes up, the audience
18:07will boo, even if it's a gala premiere.
18:11And, of course, on that, Jada, Canal+, there's been a big dispute.
18:16600 prominent figures from the film industry writing an open letter against the conservative billionaire who's its main shareholder.
18:24And this is creating quite a stir.
18:27Yes, and it's also because the CEO of Canal+, here at Cannes, after that letter came out, basically said
18:35that they would blackball anybody who was on that letter.
18:38So they said they will blackball all of these 600 artists, including Julia Binoche.
18:48And, yeah, the controversy just continues.
18:52Okay, well, Jada, we'll keep an eye out on the action from Cannes over the weekend.
18:57Thank you so much for joining us this morning on Europe Today.
19:00And that's it from us for today and for this week.
19:03We'll be back on Tuesday next week as we're taking a break on Monday.
19:07Remember to get in touch with us with your questions and feedback.
19:11Email us at europetoday at euronews.com.
19:14And in the meantime, have a great weekend.
19:18Have a great weekend.
19:24Good luck.
19:47We'll be back on Tuesday next week.
19:55We'll be back on Tuesday next week.
19:58Bye-bye.
19:59Bye-bye.
20:00Bye-bye.
20:00Bye-bye.
20:01Bye-bye.
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