
EU, UK reach fishing and defence deals hours before first-ever summit
Brussels and London on Monday agreed new deals on fishing, energy, youth mobility and defence following marathon talks that concluded just a few hours before the first-ever EU-UK summit was to be held.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, and European Council chief Antonio Costa are set to agree on three documents: a joint statement where they set out common ground on key geopolitical challenges, a security and defence partnership, and a Common Understanding.
For both sides, the summit was initially aimed at showing just how closely aligned on key global issues they are at a time when the post-war multilateral world order is being attacked by Moscow, Beijing, and now increasingly Washington.
But the spectre of Brexit quickly loomed large with bilateral and sectoral issues taking talks to the wire and risking to turn this summit into a damp squib. On the one side, the EU stuck to its position that nothing is agreed until everything is agreed, while on the other, Britain's Labour government had to contend with bruising local elections where Brexiteer Nigel Farage's Reform Party performed well.
The Common Understanding, which sets out the parametres of the relationships over a number of bilateral issues including thorny ones such as fishing rights, Sanitary and Phytosanitary rules (SPS), and youth mobility, was therefore the hardest to thrash out, with negotiations continuing overnight on Sunday.
Politically, the hardest domestic sell for host Keir Starmer, are a 12-year extension of full reciprocal access to waters to fish and the European Court of Justice having jurisdiction over SPS matters.
The current fishing rules are set to expire in June 2026 and numbers that had been floated before the deal was finalised hovered around a five-year extension.
British Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds insisted on Monday morning that the government hadn't sacrificed fishing for closer alignment on other issues, stressing that access to the EU market for the UK fishing industry "is fundamental".
"We need some certainty in place, you don't want things on an annual basis," he also told BBC radio.
Both sides were keen to stress that the package is ambitious, balanced and crucially did not cross any red lines they both had going into the talks.
An EU official said, for instance, that the summit "shows that we have entered a new chapter in our relations with UK – a neighbour, an ally and a global partner" and that "we are turning a page and moving towards a new strategic partnership".
"The negotiation process in the run-up to this summit went until the last minute. But negotiations took place always in good faith on both sides, and the result is very positive for both," the official added.
This good faith will need to continue as both sides will have to return to the negotiating table quickly to formalise the sectoral deals included in the Common Understanding with legal agreements.
The same applies to the security and defence cooperation as the partnership struck on Monday does not yet allow the UK to take part in the EU's €150 billion SAFE programme to boost joint procurement. How much the UK will need to contribute to the EU budget to take part, for instance, has yet to be defined.
The instrument, part of the EU's Readiness 2030 plan to strengthen the bloc's defence sector and capabilities, includes a so-called European preference under which some 65% of the weapon systems bought must be made in the EU or in third countries with which it has agreements in place. This currently excludes the UK and its defence manufacturers.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

LeMonde
2 hours ago
- LeMonde
EU removes UAE from 'high-risk' money-laundering list, adds Monaco
The European Union on Tuesday, June 10, announced the removal of the United Arab Emirates from its money-laundering "high-risk" list but added Monaco alongside nine other jurisdictions. The European Commission said it added Algeria, Angola, Côte d'Ivoire, Kenya, Laos, Lebanon, Namibia, Nepal and Venezuela, along with Monaco, to the list of countries subject to extra monitoring of their money laundering controls. In addition to the UAE, it removed Barbados, Gibraltar, Jamaica, Panama, the Philippines, Senegal and Uganda. The moves come after a money-laundering watchdog said in February it had removed the Philippines from its list of countries that face increased monitoring, while adding Laos and Nepal. The Financial Action Task Force (FATF), a Paris-based organization that reviews efforts by more than 200 countries and jurisdictions to prevent money laundering and terrorism financing, compiles a "grey list" of nations that are subject to increased monitoring of financial transactions. Monaco has been included on the FATF list since mid-2024, along with EU member states Bulgaria and Croatia. "The commission has now presented an update to the EU list which reiterates our strong commitment to aligning with international standards, particularly those set by the FATF," the EU's commissioner for financial services, Maria Luis Albuquerque, said. The EU list will now be scrutinized by the European Parliament and member states and will enter into force within one month if there are no objections, the commission said. In a statement, Monaco's government said it had "taken note of this expected update, which would lead to Monaco being placed on the EU's list, unless the European Parliament or the Council of the EU decides otherwise." It also stressed its commitment to take the necessary steps to be removed from the FATF's grey list "in the short term."


Euronews
2 hours ago
- Euronews
Uzbekistan and Hungary agreed to form an enhanced strategic partnership
The US Senate has confirmed Charles Kushner, the father of President Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner, to serve as ambassador to France. The 70-year-old real estate developer, who received a presidential pardon from Trump in December 2020 over convictions for witness tampering and tax evasion, was confirmed by a 51-45 vote in the Senate on Monday. When Trump announced his desire to nominate Kushner in November, the US president called him "a tremendous business leader, philanthropist, and dealmaker." Kushner's son Jared is a former White House adviser who is married to Trump's eldest daughter, Ivanka. At his confirmation hearing on 1 May before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Kushner was asked about his criminal past. He was sentenced in 2005 to two years in prison after pleading guilty to 18 counts. "My misjudgement and mistake was over 20 years ago," Kushner told the hearing. "Since then, I've been pardoned by President Trump. But I don't sit here before you today and tell you I'm a perfect person. I am not a perfect person. I made a very very very serious mistake, and I paid a very heavy price for that mistake," he added. Former New Jersey governor and Republican presidential candidate Chris Christie — who brought the charges against Kushner when he was a US attorney in the early 2000s — said his case was "one of the most loathsome, disgusting crimes" he ever prosecuted. Kushner will go to France as the relationship between the two traditional allies, and between Washington and the rest of Europe, has been strained over Trump's trade policies and the US position on Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. At his confirmation hearing, Kushner said he would work closely with France to "bring greater balance to our important economic relationship" and also encourage France to "invest more in its defence capabilities, as well as lead the EU to align with the US vision of increased European commitments to security." It is unclear how Kushner's appointment will be received in France. After Trump announced his nomination in November, Gérard Araud, a former French ambassador to the US, was among several people to express scepticism or criticism over the decision. "Needless to say, he has no knowledge of our country. At least he will have access to the president. We console ourselves as best we can," Araud wrote in a post on X. Senator Cory Booker, who represents Kushner's home state of New Jersey, was the lone Democrat to vote in favour on Monday. One Republican, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, voted against it. Uzbekistan and Hungary have agreed to form an enhanced strategic partnership. The treaty was signed by Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán on Tuesday afternoon in Budapest. The two countries have also concluded agreements at ministerial level: an extradition treaty, a treaty on cooperation in disaster management and one on climate protection, and an agreement on Hungary's participation in the construction of nuclear power plants in Uzbekistan. The Central Asian country has sent a large delegation to Budapest, with the President, four ministers and several businessmen visiting the Hungarian capital. On Tuesday morning, members of the delegation held talks with Minister of National Economy Márton Nagy and Hungarian businessmen on cooperation opportunities. 'One of the very developed areas in Hungary is fishery, and we have a huge opportunity in Uzbekistan. In the past few years, we brought Hungarian companies and Hungarian genotypes of fish, but in this visit, we are developing with Hungarian companies a new program to establish more extensive and intensive projects" - the minister of agriculture of Uzbekistan, Ibrokhim Abdurakhmonov told Euronews. The Uzbek head of state, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev also held talks with the Hungarian speaker of the Parliament. At the meeting, László Kövér said that they would like to extend the strategic partnership to closer cooperation between the two parliaments. A group of 68 immigrants from Honduras and Colombia returned to their countries of origin on Monday from Texas as part of a new initiative by the Trump administration. The programme promotes the departure of people in an irregular migratory situation in what the Trump administration is calling "voluntary deportations." In early May, the US government offered a payment of $1,000 (€889) to undocumented migrants who made the choice to leave the country voluntarily. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem confirmed on Monday that the first departure flight marks the beginning of the so-called "Project Homecoming" plan. According to Noem, the action is not part of the usual Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations, but a voluntary and assisted process. In a post on his X account, Noem said, "If you are in this country illegally, deport yourself NOW and preserve your opportunity to potentially return the legal and correct way." "If you don't, you will be subject to fines, arrest, deportation and never be allowed to return," she added. Participants in the programme used a CBP Home application to formalise their departure and received the money promised to support their return. Upon arrival in both Honduras and Colombia, migrants were met with local assistance. The Hondurans were also included in the 'Hermano, Hermana, Vuelve a Casa' programme, which provides a $100 voucher (€89) for adults, including food aid and job orientation. Colombian returnees were assisted by the Colombian Institute for Family Welfare (ICBF) and the Department for Social Prosperity (DPS) — agencies in charge of facilitating social and economic reintegration. The programme is part of the new immigration policies promoted by Donald Trump since the start of his second term in office in January, with the aim of reducing irregular immigration in the country. His offer to allow migrants to depart voluntarily has been matched with highly-publicised detentions in the US and flying a couple hundred of Venezuelan migrants to a maximum security prison in El Salvador.


France 24
3 hours ago
- France 24
UK and four nations sanction two far-right Israeli ministers
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir will be banned from entering the UK and will have any assets in the country frozen, Britain's foreign ministry said in a statement. The announcement was a rare joint action alongside Australia, Canada, New Zealand and Norway and comes as the Israeli government faces growing international criticism over its conduct of the conflict with Hamas. The sanction sees the five countries break from Israel's closest ally, the United States. Ben Gvir and Smotrich "have incited extremist violence and serious abuses of Palestinian human rights", the foreign ministers of the five countries said in a joint statement. "These actions are not acceptable. This is why we have taken action now –- to hold those responsible to account," they added. Smotrich and Ben Gvir are part of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's fragile ruling coalition. Both have drawn criticism for their hard-line stance on the war in Gaza and comments about settlements in the occupied West Bank, the other Palestinian territory. Smotrich, who lives in a West Bank settlement, has supported the expansion of settlements and has increasingly called for the territory's annexation. Last month, he said Gaza would be "entirely destroyed" and that civilians would "start to leave in great numbers to third countries". Ben Gvir has also called for Gazans to be resettled from the besieged territory. UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy said the pair have used "horrendous extremist language" and that he would "encourage the Israeli government to disavow and condemn that language". Earlier, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said Israel had been informed by Britain of its sanctions decision, describing the move as "outrageous". The UK foreign ministry said in its statement that "extremist settlers have carried out over 1,900 attacks against Palestinian civilians since January last year". 'Personal capacity' It said the five countries were "clear that the rising violence and intimidation by Israeli settlers against Palestinian communities in the West Bank must stop". "Measures today cannot be seen in isolation from events in Gaza where Israel must uphold international humanitarian law," the foreign ministry said. It added that the UK and its partners "support Israel's security and will continue to work with the Israeli government to strive to achieve an immediate ceasefire in Gaza". "Hamas must release the hostages immediately, and there must be a path to a two-state solution with Hamas having no role in future governance," it added. The action comes after the British government suspended free-trade negotiations with Israel last month and summoned its ambassador over the conduct of the war. It also announced financial restrictions and travel bans on several prominent settlers, as well as two illegal outposts and two organisations accused of backing violence against Palestinian communities.