Explainer: Why new right wing Polish president is on EU collision course
Polish nationalist candidate Karol Nawrocki won the second round of the country's presidential election with 50.89pc of the votes. his election is a blow to the reform agenda of the pro-European government.
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Agriland
3 hours ago
- Agriland
Watch: ‘It's in Europe's interest to move off fossil fuels'
The Climate Change Advisory Council's chairperson, Marie Donnelly has said that Europe should 'move off fossil fuels' to address issues with climate change. Donnelly was a panelist at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine's (DAFM) Agriculture and Climate Change conference in Dublin Castle today (June 5). Climate Change Advisory Council's chairperson, Marie Donnelly She told Agriland that Ireland's climate legislation is in place, but that it is 'not fast enough, and not deep enough'. Donnelly said: 'At a European level, one of the political questions that's center stage right now is whether the commission will endorse the recommendations of the European Scientific Body for the 2040 Carbon Budget, which is a 90% reduction in emissions. 'It's quite a political discussion, members of the EU Parliament are discussing it. The commission is debating it, and we expect something in September.' The Climate Change Advisory chair believes that there is a 'greater awareness' for farming as an industry, and as a way of life, and outlined the role that the EU will play in counteracting climate change. 'It's very important that Europe, as part of it's general approach, thinks about Europe itself, it's own self sufficiency, and it's own efficiency,' Donnelly said. 'When we look at climate change in Europe, it's very pertinent. Europe is the fast warming continent in the world.' 'What is causing global warming faster than anything else? Fossil fuels. Europe has no fossil fuels. We import all of our fossil fuels. Strategically, from a competitiveness point of view, and a security point of view, it's in Europe's interest to move off fossil fuels, as it happens it works for the climate,' Donnelly added. Marie Donnelly Donnelly believes that change is necessary throughout society in order to combat climate change, and that farmers will be impacted. She said: 'To understand what change we need to make, and to support people in making that change, that includes farmers. It might be financial support, new research, new ways of doing things that allow farmers to be efficient and climate active at the same time. 'We have to think of ways to get information out to farmers. Yes it might be financial, but it's more than that, communication, education, dialogue, mutual support, farm leaders, to get message out to adopt new mechanism. 'Farmers have been adopting new methods always. This is not new for farming. If you look at farming 20 years ago, it's not the same as today. It's the nature of farming to modernise as it goes forward,' Donnelly added.
RTÉ News
3 hours ago
- RTÉ News
Merz tells Trump he wants 'more pressure' on Russia
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has urged US President Donald Trump to put more pressure on Russia to bring an end to its three-year-old war against Ukraine. "You know that we gave support to Ukraine and that we are looking for more pressure on Russia," Mr Merz told President Trump at the start of their White House meeting. Mr Trump described Mr Merz as a good representative of Germany and also "difficult," which he suggested was a compliment. He said US troops would remain in Germany and said it was positive that the German government was spending more money on defence. Mr Merz said he was pleased to be there and preparing for a deeper relationship with the United States. The two leaders met in the Oval Office, which has been the site of showdowns between President Trump and visiting dignitaries including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa. However, President Trump and Mr Merz, both conservatives, appeared to have a warm rapport from the start. Mr Merz started with praise, thanking President Trump for putting him up in the Blair House, a presidential guest dwelling across from the White House, and he thanked him for doing so. However, tensions over trade simmered under the surface of their encounter. The United States and the European Union are in talks to reach a trade deal, which would be critical for Germany's export-heavy economy, but Mr Trump said he would be fine with an agreement or with tariffs. "We'll end up hopefully with a trade deal," he said. "I'm ok with the tariffs or we make a deal with the trade," Mr Trump Mr Merz, who took office last month, told reporters ahead of the meeting that they would discuss Russia's war in Ukraine, US tariffs and NATO in the meeting but said he was not expecting major breakthroughs. Germany is the second-largest military and financial backer of Ukraine in its defence against Russia's invasion, after the United States. Mr Trump has urged NATO countries to spend more on defence, though he suggested there might be some limits on how far Berlin should go given its World War II past. The meeting comes amid a broader fraying of ties between the US and many European countries. Mr Trump's administration has intervened in domestic European politics in a break with past practice, aligning with right-wing political movements and challenging European policies on immigration and free speech. Mr Merz, 69, and his entourage have sought coaching from other leaders on how to deal with President Trump to avoid conflict, according to a source briefed on the matter. The meeting is taking place just weeks before a critical summit of the NATO Western military alliance, which has been strained by Mr Trump's threats that the US will not come to the aid of allies that do not increase their defence spending. Such threats are of particular concern to Germany, which has relied on US nuclear deterrence for its security since the end of World War II. Mr Merz has already made some bold policy moves that he can highlight to appease Mr Trump, analysts said. He has backed President Trump's demand for NATO members to commit to a target of more than doubling defence spending to 5% of economic output in the future, earning praise last weekend from US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth. Mr Merz, who has promised a more assertive foreign policy, also coordinated a visit by European leaders to Kyiv just days after taking office, two European diplomat sources said. "This shows that Germany is willing to accept a greater responsibility for Ukraine and the European security order – these are all things that have been wished for in the United States over years and will be welcomed," said Sudha David-Wilp of the German Marshall Fund of the United States. Mr Merz and Mr Trump could find some common ground given they share business backgrounds, membership in right-of-centre political parties, a focus on fighting illegal immigration and a fondness for golf, said Steven Sokol, President and CEO of the American Council on Germany. However, analysts noted frictions in the US-German relationship. Mr Merz was publicly critical of President Trump shortly before the 2024 presidential election.
Irish Independent
5 hours ago
- Irish Independent
Brazil's Lula and France's Macron spar over EU-Mercosur trade deal
The differences between the two men underline the challenges of getting the long-delayed trade deal between South America's Mercosur bloc and the European Union over the line. A deal was finalised in December but still needs approval from member states like France, which argues the pact as it stands is harmful to its powerful agricultural sector. Lula, on a state visit to France, said he will soon take up the rotating presidency of South America's Mercosur bloc, and committed to using that six-month stint to ink a lasting accord. "I will not leave the Mercosur presidency without having concluded the trade deal," Lula told a press conference alongside Macron, urging the French president to "open your heart" to the deal. He also said he would like to get French and Brazilian farmers together so they could settle their differences and hash out an accord, while also urging Macron to reassure European peers about Brazil's commitment to fight deforestation. Macron said he was in favor of free and equitable trade, but that the deal currently harms French and European farmers who would have to compete against South American peers not subject to the same norms and regulations. He said the text could be improved with the insertion of mirror clauses. France has previously argued for the insertion of an emergency break clause to restrict imports if a sudden surge in imports destabilizes certain EU markets. In a meeting with French lawmakers this week, French farmers' groups urged Macron to rally partners to form a blocking minority against the Mercosur deal, which they say would be devastating for the beef, poultry and sugar industries and compromise the EU's ambitions in terms of food sovereignty. On the war between Russia and Ukraine, Macron said Brazil, along with China and India, could do more to pressure Moscow to end the fighting. Lula said he was committed to brokering peace between Russia and Ukraine, while Macron said everyone wanted peace, but that Moscow was the aggressor and that fact needed to be taken into account when adjudicating an end to the fighting.
