This week, two very different speeches from two very different Donalds suggest the EU should fasten its seatbelt for a turbulent few years.
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00:00Hello there and welcome to Brussels My Love, Euronews' weekly talk show, where we break
00:17down the highs and lows of EU politics. I'm Maeve McMahon in Strasbourg, where MEPs met
00:23for their very first plenary session of 2025. Coming up, Donald Trump is back. This Monday
00:29saw the inauguration of the 47th President of the United States. It's not the Republican
00:35billionaire's first White House rodeo, but despite EU claims to be prepared, officials
00:41here are in a flap. The direct line to the Oval Office has disappeared overnight, with
00:46President Trump showing little respect for EU institutions and also the image of the
00:50EU on the world stage dwindling. We're asking how Brussels and Strasbourg will stay relevant.
00:57Donald Tusk is in town. The Polish Prime Minister was in Strasbourg this week, calling for the
01:02EU to be united against the Kremlin. He said Russia was also planning major terror attacks
01:07on airlines across the world. With so many threats facing European security, not to mention
01:13the climate and the economy, we're asking what the former European Council chief can
01:18manage to achieve during his six months holding the EU's rotating presidency. A warm welcome
01:24to our guests this weekend. Mika Aaltola, Finnish centre-right MEP with the European
01:30People's Party. Abid Alsalani, Swedish Liberal MEP with Renew Europe. And Virginius Sinkovicius,
01:38Lithuanian MEP with the Greens. Thank you so much for being with us. But as always,
01:43before we hear your views, let's just hear what everyone in Strasbourg was talking about
01:46this week. A new dawn has begun. Donald Trump is back in the Oval Office, completing the
01:57most stunning comeback in US history. Many in Europe are worried, but many are also jubilant.
02:09Unlike during Trump's first term, there are many more far-right parties in European governments
02:14today. Some predict a low point in transatlantic relations. But from Jimmy Carter to George
02:23W. Bush, from Ronald Reagan to Barack Obama, there's always been some friction with Washington.
02:29So what's on the cards this time? Well, we've already had a good taste of what's in store
02:39given the amount of executive orders already signed by President Trump. Abir, should the
02:43EU start fastening its seatbelts? Well, we should have been prepared. I mean, we have had some time
02:49for us and we've already seen what his broligarics are doing. Guys like Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg
02:59and all of these rich boys playing with the world order for their own benefits and their own
03:07interests. We should have been prepared and not be surprised and taken by surprise. And this is
03:13what we have been saying for a while. But unfortunately, the brakes have been hit because of
03:19different political agendas that we have inside the EU. Same question to you, Mika? Well, it
03:26wasn't a surprise, first of all. I think a lot of people were prepared. When Donald Trump was
03:32elected in 2016, it was a surprise to himself as well. Now it wasn't anymore. We know who he is,
03:39where he comes from and his policy lines and his style of being overly emphasising certain points
03:50to annoy us and to troll us. And, you know, his point is to make us leave the room. We should not
03:59leave the room because he usually listens to the last person who remains in the room and he remembers
04:03what he or she said. And the same question to you. How are the Greens feeling? Well, I think there is
04:11no surprise. Surprise was probably 2016. There were two surprises, Brexit and Trump. Now, more or less,
04:19we kind of know and the actions that have been taken, withdrawing from the Paris Agreement, I
04:25think that hasn't surprised anyone. For Europe, our strategic goals should not change. It doesn't
04:31matter how elections in the U.S. go. We need to ensure a competitive energy price. We need to ensure
04:38our energy independence from anyone outside Europe. We need to ensure that our companies are
04:44competitive, that our social fabric is working and delivering for people. And the U.S. is going to
04:52remain our ally. I hope they will have the same respect as we do to democratic institutions, to the
04:59rule of law, which, in a way, bonds this transatlantic bond. We, of course, have to invest into the
05:06relations with the U.S. because U.S. is also changing. I lived in the U.S. before. And even if you look
05:14through the surnames of Congress people, many of them, they had Polish, even Lithuanian surnames. Many of
05:21them would say that, you know, I have Irish roots or my grandfather was fighting in the World War Two
05:28here in Europe. Now that bond is disappearing. So we also should not take this sort of friendship with the
05:35U.S. for granted. And Trump's electoral speeches, they were very much oriented into domestic audience. And
05:43the actions that he's taking is very much oriented into domestic audience.
05:48Of course, there was no matter.
05:48But if you check what he said, actually, he was saying that U.S. is in decline. But a report said that we are in
05:57decline. So there's commonalities when it comes to the kind of a democratic West. So we shouldn't see this as a
06:05separate incident. So the American elections, they resulted in one resolution, one solution to this problem that we
06:15are also feeling in here. We are in decline. The politics is not going very well here as well. So kind of using overly
06:22epic words about strategic sovereignty. And now, finally, we are going to.
06:27And if you look at the White House website this week, it's transformed as well with big, bold writing everywhere, very clear
06:34messages, very slick communication style, something perhaps the commission could copy and paste to make their style a little bit
06:40easier. But you mentioned Donald Trump's speech. We can actually take a listen to an excerpt from President Trump's speech that he
06:46delivered straight after his inauguration and swearing ceremony on Monday.
06:51The golden age of America begins right now.
06:59From this day forward, our country will flourish and be respected again all over the world. We will be the envy of every
07:07nation and we will not allow ourselves to be taken advantage of any longer. During every single day of the Trump
07:16administration, I will very simply put America first.
07:26Beard, did you tune into that speech?
07:28Not really, because it's so fascinating to actually listen to Trump because he see he's saying that he will make people
07:35respect America again and not be used. Well, America is actually have been acting as the world police and gaining a lot of
07:44money from it. They are gaining power. They're investing. It's not without, you know, a charge that they have been the world
07:52police. So it's so much bullshit in there. And I really don't understand how people, how anyone who can read a book actually
08:00believe that guy. If the US wants to be respected again, then it has to be part of the international order, not outside it.
08:08But as you can see this week, he's been rolling back, signing a number of executive orders, rolling back on a lot of things
08:14that were signed in by Joe Biden.
08:16But I think it's also done with the purpose, because if you look what he did. So, for example, among those many things that he
08:24signed, he dismissed all CIA directors, which is a very serious move, which was overlooked by many other moves like Paris
08:32agreement, like stating that there is two agendas and so on. So I think, you know, communication wise, his team and himself is, of
08:39course, a genius managing to hide important things under under the things that irritates people. But if you look at the
08:47reality, and I relate very much to what has been said, look at the first term. Trump came with the tariffs agenda. So, for
08:56example, tariffs on steel, 25%. At the end of the term, guess how much jobs in the steel industry was created in the US? Minus 4000
09:07jobs. But if you look overall into the production, it was almost 20,000 jobs decline in the production, rather than increase. So I
09:18mean, his work did not prove anything than just a decline.
09:26And he has warned again this week, the tariffs is his favourite word, and he will be coming thick and fast towards the European
09:32Union slapping tariffs that will hurt our economy. Is the EU prepared? Do we have instruments and tools?
09:37Well, he has been quiet about Europe. So we should remain in constant contact with him and those close to him.
09:47Are you in contact with his administration?
09:49Well, I know some people who are going to go into the administration. And I used to be a scholar, and I'm still a scholar, whose main job
09:58was to follow US and study American foreign policy. And this speech actually was in line with American president's speeches in
10:09similar situations. He was very proud of being American and seeing future ahead, going to Mars and putting American flag there. So he
10:18was talking about expansion of US also in territorial terms, but mostly when it comes to bringing the American might back, having
10:27that big stick that Europe lacks, and then being able to talk softer because he's listened to. And well, you know, Syria, the
10:37collapse of government, the deal in Gaza, all of those happened because the uncertainty that he's creating.
10:47And so people are creating momentum. He has momentum.
10:51No, he's actually creating gaps. That is the problem. Gaps of proper leadership, proper political leadership. What is happening in
11:00Syria? Nobody knows. They just, you know, overthrow a dictatorship. We don't know. We don't know what's coming after. And the gap of
11:10political leadership means also that Syria is going to unknown future. And the same is with the with the deal in Gaza and Israel. Do you
11:18know that already in the West Bank, the Israeli tractors are demolishing refugee camps already? It has not been even five days since
11:28the cease at the ceasefire deal was struck. And why is that? It's because Trump is in power, because there is no one who is actually
11:35asking the relevant question, putting these people accountable to anything.
11:39But meanwhile, of course, he's answering the queries of his voters and his MAGA supporters. But you mentioned something interesting,
11:45which is you're trying to reach out, of course, to the Trump administration, make friends there. But you didn't get an invite to the big
11:52well, I didn't. I'm usually not many European politicians or leaders. I invited Italian Prime Minister was there. And of course, that's that is
12:01one link that we could use in here. We have to use all the channels that we have, because US economy for us is so vital. And also, when it
12:10comes to energy in Europe, security on multiple sectors. Well, look, America is something that we cannot replace. And, you know, when you're
12:22talking about European sovereignty, strategic sovereignty with bold words, you're actually using Trump's words. But Trump is doing things. He
12:30brought manufacturing jobs back to the US as well. They increased also during the Biden years. And the economy is doing very well compared to
12:40Europe. So there are quite a lot of things to be able to learn.
12:46You're absolutely wrong here. If you look at the numbers, the manufacturing jobs decreased during the Trump's term. Renewable energy has
12:54increased, which he hated. So one thing is the speeches that are oriented into people. And, you know, I agree very much that the speech was
13:03oriented into bring this spirit up, which we cannot compare Europe, European Union and the United States. Because, you know, Europe is a unique
13:14project of 27 different countries, a project that he has no respect with a different history, but a project that the President of the
13:22United States has zero respect for.
13:24I don't want to underestimate us, because you cannot also go around Europe. He needs Europe.
13:32But that's exactly what he will be doing.
13:34As as as as Europe needs US.
13:36That's right.
13:37And therefore, I wouldn't be so dramatic. LNG, for example, that Trump is saying that now, you know, he signed the orders to to to to increase
13:48extraction. It's no secret in Europe we still need gas. The transition didn't happen yet. Energy one. So if that is going to secure and help
14:00certain number of states to get the gas cheaper, I think it's only, you know, a win for us. Cheaper households, prices for heating for people
14:10and more competitive price for the for the industry.
14:12I see. And I think this is how we should have to have to be acting in the EU, you know, cooperate where we can cooperate with when it's to our
14:20benefit, but also take our global responsibility as being political leaders.
14:26But when it comes to economics trade, I think that we should, you know, do the best out of it and see where we can also help the good
14:34things happening in like, you know, the green transition in the US and try there to benefit from it and to help them also transit.
14:43Well, I think the key to European success with Trump is to return to the geopolitical roots of the European Union.
14:49And when Winston Churchill was giving that famous Zurich speech, he was talking about European integration in terms of containing Russia and
14:59stopping the spread of communism. That is something that we should return to.
15:05And then we have some respect when we have a defense and when we have power.
15:09Right now, nobody is listening to us.
15:12And that's the problem of Europe.
15:14Nobody's listening to us.
15:15And President Trump, for his part, he's listening to the European conservatives and reformists.
15:19You said, Giorgio Maloney, of course, the Italian prime minister was at that integration among Europeans.
15:24We saw the former prime minister of Poland, Mateusz Morawiecki, taking a selfie of himself there on Monday, showing really the privileged
15:32relationship the European conservatives and reformists, the party here in the parliament have.
15:37I guess the concern as well is how this could impact us here in Europe, these connections that President Trump has.
15:43But I mean, you see it.
15:44Who did Elon Musk invite to his platform?
15:47It wasn't a liberal.
15:48So, I mean, these are very, very much these ideologies are very much connected and they will ride on each other's waivers.
15:55And I mean, you see it already in the plenary.
15:58We have many Trumps sitting there on the right side of the house, applauding when when Europe is failing, when people are killed, when people are
16:06oppressed, they are applauding.
16:07And this is exactly what what he will use, these useful idiots that we have inside here.
16:12I think what's very important here, you know, one thing that nobody can not intervene into elections and into democratic processes in
16:24Europe, in you, but also in the member states.
16:27And doesn't matter that you are Vladimir Putin or you are Elon Musk.
16:31Democratic principles apply and we have to defend democracy because this is what our EU is built on, on those fundamental values.
16:39But these values are being challenged.
16:42They are inviting Elon Musk to as a nominee for the Sakharov Prize.
16:47I mean, they do not.
16:49That is the problem that we have.
16:50But people inside this house are not subscribing to the democratic values and principles.
16:54It's nothing new, you know, in politics, you always have people, people that not necessarily, let's say, support even the democratic
17:07institutions that they were elected into to represent.
17:10But I think, you know, here the most important thing is to ensure that our legislation is respected.
17:17When we talk about DSA, for example, this huge debate now, which is which is being trying to put that it's some sort of fact checking
17:28versus versus basically, you know, killing the freedom of speech, which is which is not true.
17:35You know, facts and freedom of speech has two different, completely different.
17:41According to the European legislation, there's multiple alternatives that the platforms can use.
17:46And when we've heard now from the politicians, I also want to bring in some voices from the streets.
17:52We were out in Brussels turning the Euronews microphone to locals there to find out how they feel about four more years of President Trump in the Oval Office.
18:00Everything he promises, he delivers, whether it's good for some or bad for others.
18:05But he's a straightforward person and I like him for that.
18:09It's dangerous to have such a such a president of the United States, which is the most powerful person in this world.
18:17So it's quite frightening.
18:19I'm not really happy about it.
18:21So about like immigration, about how it feels like about racism also.
18:27I'm in favor of Trump's election, not because of the character he is, but because of his approach to the U.S. economy.
18:35And I think we should follow his example.
18:39I would rather say that I'm more worried than anything else in terms of what could be the implication of the new U.S.
18:49foreign policy.
18:51Not everything is going to please.
18:53That's for sure. But no pain, no gain.
18:55If we talk about war, I think Trump is here to prevent us from having a war.
19:00So mixed bag there of opinions.
19:01Something we should.
19:03I think, you know, it resonates in Europe as well.
19:07Let's be honest that we have political forces here that are very sympathetic to what Donald Trump represents.
19:14So it's not Europe versus U.S.
19:18We are common society after all.
19:22We uphold the same democratic principles.
19:24Some are more conservative.
19:26Some are more liberal.
19:27And we somehow have to find resolutions to these situations.
19:31And pragmatically, like what Donald Trump said, we have to find the common sense.
19:36And it needs to be redefined in every time, perhaps in a little bit different ways, because the world is changing.
19:43Russia is attacking Europe right now.
19:46That's the main challenge we have.
19:48Donald Trump might be a problem or might be a promise.
19:52We have to see how this carries out.
19:54What is the resolution?
19:55I think, I mean, him just he has not even started to breathe the oxygen in the Oval Room and he already cut all development aid.
20:05He had a 90 days gag rule on all development aid, only that showcases what kind of leadership he's showing.
20:13But I do subscribe to the notion that we need to cooperate with the U.S.
20:17We need to strengthen our own competitiveness.
20:20And we need to work with them where we can, without undermining the global order, without undermining international order, without undermining our own democratic institutions.
20:31That is the most important thing.
20:32Implementation, enforcement of EU law will be essential here.
20:37Always about implementation.
20:38That's always the tricky one.
20:39But of course, we saw President Trump as well this week pull out of the WHO Paris agreement, as you said, and also the OECD, which is a tax deal which took years of negotiations as well to get over the line.
20:50But that's that's exactly what I think is actually sending a wrong signal.
20:56And on the other hand, it probably gives an opportunity to Europe because there are many companies, including European companies, Siemens, together with the Spanish company.
21:07They believe that IRA is going to be there and invested 500 million to build turbines for wind power.
21:19That's not going to happen anymore because Trump is revoking IRA.
21:22So many businesses that focusing on clean tech and innovation now, they feel fooled and not being welcomed.
21:30So this is a bit of opportunity for us as well.
21:33And from that positive point, we can bring this conversation to a close.
21:38Thank you so much to our panel.
21:39And you stay with us here on Euronews, because soon we'll be back to discuss another Donald who's making headlines here.
21:45That's Poland's Prime Minister, Donald Tusk.
21:47So see you very soon here on Euronews.
21:58Welcome back to Brussels, my love, Euronews's weekly talk show.
22:01I'm Maeve McMahan broadcasting from the European Parliament here in Strasbourg.
22:06Now, if you're a regular viewer, you will be well informed that Poland has picked up the EU presidency role from Hungary.
22:12And with that chairing job also comes the obligation of showing up here in Strasbourg and going face to face with MEPs.
22:19That's why this week we saw the Polish Prime Minister, Donald Tusk, take center stage to set out his plan for the next six months.
22:27Donald Tusk had a very clear message for the hemicycle.
22:30His tone was positive and one of reassurance.
22:33Take a listen.
22:35Europe is, Europe was, and Europe will always be great.
22:45In order to paraphrase John Fitzgerald Kennedy.
22:51Ask not what America can do for Europe and its security.
22:56Ask what we ourselves can do for it.
23:00If Europe is to survive, it must be armed.
23:04It's not our choice.
23:06I'm not a militarist.
23:07If we want to avoid revisiting history, don't play down the appeal to spend five percent of GDP.
23:16So Donald Tusk there with a rather reassuring message.
23:19Mika, were you in the room listening to the speech?
23:21How did it go down with MEPs?
23:22Well, it was a good speech and he was taking, he was proud about Europe.
23:27He was almost Trumpian in the terms.
23:31You know, Europe was great and it's always going to be great.
23:35We have to be confident and we have to assert that confidence as well.
23:39And if you don't have the military power, then you don't, then you don't feel that big stick and nobody is going to listen to you.
23:46And is that a lesson perhaps for mainstream politicians to be more Trumpian, if you like, or more populist in their messaging to get the message across?
23:54I don't think so.
23:55I do believe that substance will triumph the populism.
24:00But I think that we really do need to simplificate, to simplify our messaging as politicians, because often we talk above the heads of the people.
24:09And especially if you if you're saying, I mean, today, only today, I needed to ask my political adviser, what the hell is it in this email?
24:18It was full of, you know, short and big, you know, like.
24:23We're in an era of TikTok and Instagram where people's attention spans are quite low.
24:26But were you in that room for that speech?
24:28Absolutely. I think it was a good speech.
24:31I don't want to call it Trumpian because there were many great speeches delivered before Trump.
24:36I think, you know, what's very important with the Polish presidency, that Poland sees very well the challenges Europe is facing.
24:46That's why security is the key issue.
24:48What presidency is going to be about.
24:51And it's really the time to step up our defensive efforts, especially when we talk about the Baltic Sea.
24:58We see the actions of possible sabotages continues on the on the critical infrastructure, but also continuous cyber attacks and etc.
25:08So definitely we have to stand tall.
25:11And I think that was a good speech.
25:14And I do feel in safe hands with Donald Tuscany driving, steering the ship for the next six months.
25:20Especially if you look across Germany and France, the leaders were meeting this week, but obviously they're both in big trouble.
25:27Well, I listened also to his speech very carefully and it felt good listening to him and especially his closing remarks where he's actually got
25:35standing ovations for a very long time because he could shut up the far right who were constantly hacking, you know, like hating on the EU,
25:45on Europe, on our common values.
25:48And he could, you know, just snap them off.
25:51But when it comes to what the next six months can be, I do believe it will be very important for him to revise his position when it comes to
26:00the Green Deal, where he has been very critical, because I think if there is something that can be of importance for our competitiveness,
26:07it's the Green Deal and the transition towards a better climate policy.
26:11Well, that indeed impacts your party a lot, of course.
26:14I think here, on one hand, if you take Tusk by himself, of course, it's probably one of the best CVs that you can have at that position.
26:24On the other hand, when you talk about, for example, Green Deal, I'm pretty sure that, again, it can be renamed in any other way.
26:35But how should it be called?
26:36It doesn't matter how it's going to be called.
26:38It's the most important what it has to reach.
26:40The goals are the most important.
26:42The branding doesn't matter.
26:43Branding, what matters is, this is what Donald Trump sometimes tries to do, with some of the...
26:49And right now, the green band is not working.
26:51Now it's called clean.
26:53To me, it doesn't really matter.
26:56The most important is to reach the goal.
26:58Well, you know, it tells you something about the momentum that has shifted.
27:03And now when geopolitics is all of a sudden an existential issue, I firmly believe that it does.
27:10And so is the climate, if you look at the science.
27:12It is, it is, as well.
27:14And it is there.
27:15But there's no sense of urgency to address it.
27:17But the European competitiveness is based on the Green Deal or Clean Deal progressing as smoothly as possible.
27:27But we need to invest after years and years of peace dividend and cashing in, investing on other matters.
27:34We need to now invest into defense.
27:37And one question I could ask is that, where did that peace dividend money go?
27:43Because Europe has been in steady decline when it comes to economy, competitiveness, and politics as well.
27:50So that cashing in into the defense money didn't go very well.
27:53So let's invest, reinvest.
27:56Put our voters on board, Abir, with this.
27:58And when you tell your voters we need to get armed, we need to get militarized societies, we need to start spending on defense and cutting on hospitals and education.
28:05This is the difference between us and the U.S.
28:07We are not a federation.
28:09We don't have a federal system.
28:11We are 27 different member states with our unique national competences that I do believe are stated now in the treaty.
28:19And I do believe it's very important to respect.
28:21Not giving Brussels more power, that will really backlash.
28:25So what I believe is that creating 27 strong member states that cooperate, that are in very close negotiations about who takes what and how to do when it comes to defense.
28:39And of course 23 are NATO members.
28:42The spending on defense didn't happen.
28:44So let's look at the numbers.
28:46It just didn't happen.
28:47Poland is a good example.
28:48Poland is a good example.
28:49Which reaches higher numbers.
28:50But only now.
28:51The most important thing when we speak about our economy declining or competitiveness declining is first of all what it was based on.
28:58And it was based on fossil fuels.
29:00Firstly, fossil fuels from Russia.
29:02Gas from Russia.
29:03Too many countries.
29:05Our industry powerhouse, Germany, has built its whole industry on the cheap Russian gas.
29:11And since Russia attacked Ukraine, it disappeared.
29:14So that was the fundamental mistake.
29:17And that's why we need to continue.
29:19Green, clean deal, the best deal.
29:21The best deal for Europe is to ensure our strategic autonomy in energy.
29:26And that can be done through renewable energy.
29:28And while you think of a good new name for that deal, we can bring this conversation to a close.
29:31Thank you so much to our panelists for being with us here.
29:33And thank you so much for watching.
29:35Stay with us here on Euronews.
29:37Hello there and welcome to Brussels My Love, Euronews' weekly chat show.
29:49I'm Maeve McMahon here in Strasbourg sitting down with MEPs Mika Altola, a conservative from Finland,
29:56Abid Alsalani, a liberal Swede, and Virginius Sinkovicius, a Lithuanian Green MEP.
30:02And among MEPs here was also the European Commission President.
30:06She's back on her feet after a bad dose of pneumonia.
30:09But Ursula von der Leyen started her week in the Swiss skiing village of Davos
30:14where the World Economic Forum is taking place.
30:17Every year, CEOs, investors, big tech, and politicians flock to the tiny Swiss town
30:22to talk politics, make business deals, and network and party
30:26at some of the most exclusive gatherings of the year.
30:29A night in a hotel in Davos can set you back by a couple of thousand euros,
30:34prompting criticism that the WEF is an elitist party just for the rich.
30:38Eva Maidel, a Bulgarian MEP and regular Davos goer,
30:42tells us it's worth every single penny in order to mix both the private and public sector.
30:47I've been always very grateful to work on the AI Act with my colleagues
30:52and to be able to continue those conversations beyond the European Parliament
30:57and beyond the so-called Brussels bubble.
31:00Davos is a place where some of those conversations become more global
31:06and we can see the way EU position itself in the world.
31:11Why do I say this? It's because very often as Europeans,
31:14we like to look at Europe from inside.
31:17So, one of your colleagues there, Eva Maidel, a Bulgarian MEP
31:20from the European People's Party, from your group who goes every year.
31:23Abir, would you like to be in Davos?
31:26It's amazing how one who wants to skip the Brussels bubble goes to the Davos bubble.
31:33I'm sorry, but I mean, kudos to her if she enjoys going there
31:38and she thinks that she's bringing the conversation outside.
31:43She has a point. The reputation of the European Union in Davos is very negative.
31:48The European Union is seen as regulators while everyone else is seen as these big innovators.
31:53So, is it not a good idea to show up?
31:55Well, the house is open here, so they are very welcome.
31:59They can invite us to their companies if they have any kind of questions.
32:04But the thing is that they always say that it is about combating poverty
32:09and bringing the most poor on board and creating wealth for everyone.
32:17Still, the discussion is never about how do we use the development aid.
32:22Where are we putting our money? How are we going to reach the global development goals?
32:26I mean, who is doing what? Why are the governments cutting?
32:30Why is the EU cutting down on its development aid and using it to, you know, to migration deals instead?
32:36So, I mean, being philanthropic, it's nice for the moment, maybe, and go party,
32:41but the real discussion is not even held.
32:44What would your thoughts be? Is it just an elite club for the rich?
32:48You know, I attended Davos a few times as commissioner.
32:53Did you party till dawn?
32:54No, I didn't party, but I'm not a party animal, so that's not something that applies to me.
33:00But the good thing is there, of course, that there are many CEOs, world leaders that are at one place,
33:07and you can have the full agenda of meetings during the day,
33:11and you can meet different people of having a very clear agenda.
33:15And this is what I was usually doing there.
33:18Indeed, you can get more work done there in a couple of days than you could perhaps over a year.
33:22Exactly.
33:23Everyone is there.
33:24And if you're a head of state, you can party till dawn without the glare of the national media on you.
33:29What about you? What are your thoughts?
33:31Well, I think that partying is not very sustainable.
33:35I usually go to sleep at 9 o'clock, so I would skip that part of it.
33:42Networking, of course, is useful, and that exclusivity and elitistic nature brings some benefits,
33:49but of course it is seen in the eyes of many as something that is perhaps a little bit sinful part of the contemporary global times that we are living in.
33:59The rich getting richer and the poor getting poorer, as Oxfam put out in their reports this week.
34:03But Ursula von der Leyen, as I said, the European Commission president, was there this week at the start of the week,
34:08and she said on her social media it's a great place to catch up with others,
34:11and she also gave a very straight-talking speech with some hidden messages for President Trump.
34:15Take a listen.
34:16The rules of engagement between global powers are changing.
34:20We should not take anything for granted.
34:24And while some in Europe may not like this new reality, we are ready to deal with it.
34:29So Ursula von der Leyen there saying that the EU can do business with other parts of the world,
34:33that it's a gigantic market and a rules-based powerhouse,
34:36and she made the front page of a lot of European newspapers, so it was probably worth her trip and her expensive hotel.
34:41Definitely. I love the confidence that she's showing.
34:44I love that she's putting EU as a global leader.
34:49I hope that she can match that with a leadership when it comes to human rights,
34:54when it comes to, you know, sanctioning countries that are violating international order and international law,
35:01and, you know, making EU member states follow the ICC orders, for example. Just a tiny example.
35:09I think what she was actually talking about was the rule-based world order,
35:14that we cannot take it for granted anymore, and it is changing, and the rules are changing.
35:19So what world are we living in?
35:22So we need to change. That was her message as well.
35:24She also made it clear that her commission would be heading off to India very soon,
35:28sending a message to the Trump administration that the EU is open to doing business with other parts of the world.
35:33Well, I think the most important part is also here to protect the world order
35:40that was so difficult, in such difficulty, built after the Second World War, and now is being threatened.
35:47First of all by the evil axis, which is formed by Russia, North Korea, that, you know, Iran,
35:54that openly supporting war in Ukraine, and this is not an easy task for us.
36:01And we, of course, need to unite our forces with the US, and hopefully they are there,
36:06but if not, then we need to also look globally for partners to face these difficulties.
36:13And meanwhile fix issues internally, with a lot of divisions as well, and disunity here.
36:18But that's part of the democratic process, and it's not necessarily that I will always agree with other opinions,
36:29but I will never put a restriction on them, and I think that's the biggest difference that we have.
36:37I will always tackle false and lies.
36:41Final thoughts for you?
36:43Well, I mean, let's start, for example, you know, initiating, or finalize, markets through negotiations.
36:50Let's start with all these deals that we have, that are just lying there and waiting to be signed, sealed, and delivered.
36:57I think that if we can manage to do that, then we are a very good step ahead.
37:02As Avira Atzelani said earlier, it's all about implementation.
37:04We will have to bring this very interesting conversation to a close.
37:08Thank you so much to our MEPs for being with us here.
37:10If you want any more information on any of the stories we've touched on today, please check out our website, Euronews.com.
37:16But thank you so much for watching.
37:18Do also reach out to brusselsmylove at Euronews.com.
37:21We'll always get back to you with your queries and your points.
37:24Thanks for watching. Take care.