Talking Europe

Energy crisis heightens risk of poverty and social exclusion: EU Commissioner Minzatu

Our guest has an important role in promoting social policies in the European Union, at a time when much of the political oxygen is being sucked out by the competitiveness and simplification agenda, as well as by defence and security issues. Roxana Minzatu is Executive Vice-President of the European Commission and is in charge of social rights and skills, quality jobs and preparedness. Minzatu is a Romanian social democrat, a former minister for European funds in the Romanian government and a former MEP. She recently presented an anti-poverty strategy aimed at dealing with the fact that one in five Europeans – or 93 million people – are at risk of poverty [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/poverty/] or social exclusion. "I want to send a signal of optimism with this strategy. I don't want to paint a bleak picture," Minzatu tells the programme. "But the reality is that the numbers (of people at risk of poverty) are dynamic. The cost of living is rising, the energy [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/energy/] shocks crisis, the invasion of Ukraine [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/ukraine/], and now the Middle East [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/middle-east/] crisis. There are a number of shocks that could modify these numbers. And then this strategy sets the path forward and sets out a kind of shield." Read moreIran war squeezes Europe’s economy as growth slumps, prices surge [https://www.france24.com/en/europe/20260521-iran-war-squeezes-europe-economy-growth-slumps-prices-surge-energy-shock] But isn't Minzatu limited by the fact that it's up to EU member states to decide on their own anti-poverty measures? "I meet prime ministers and ministers of finance, not just ministers of labour and education [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/education/]," she responds. "They're not easy conversations. Of course, many times the temptation is to say, 'but, you know, we need to invest more in security. We need to invest more in technology.' But I always bring into the discussion the essential role of people, and the quality of their jobs." Minzatu insists on the link between quality jobs and competitiveness, pointing to the proposed Quality Jobs Act that will focus on labour relations, high-risk or precarious sectors, and health and safety in the workplace. "Quality jobs are a key ingredient of being more competitive and stronger economically," she says. "Our proposal for a Quality Jobs Act is now in consultation, so both trade unions [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/unions/] and employers are giving us their input. Trade unions want more legislation, more binding rules. Employers want more guidance." The Quality Jobs Act would work hand in hand with the Union of Skills, and with the Skills Portability Initiative, "which will make use of everything we can: legislation, digital tools, AI tools to create much more equivalence and trust in qualifications, degrees and diplomas between member states, so that people can travel freely with their knowledge, with their education." Minzatu admits that all this will be a challenge amid declining performance in maths and science [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/science/] among young Europeans. "Looking at the statistics, the pandemic was the turning point where numbers started to deteriorate a bit more," she notes. "That has to do with how education was offered; the online teaching. But then we see numerous other transformations, including the impact of artificial intelligence, of technology, of social networks." We ask Minzatu about the collapse of the pro-EU government in her home country, Romania [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/romania/], following a no-confidence vote in the parliament. "Romanians are highly pro-European, and the dream of many generations has been to be part of Europe [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/europe/]. This dream does not disappear easily," she remarks. "But people will of course judge politicians from the perspective of their everyday lives. So we need to be able to address their concerns about their cost of living, their concerns about the taxes [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/taxes/] that they pay, and so on. The reactions (of Romanians) are very concretely anchored into that." Programme prepared by Isabelle Romero, Perrine Desplats, Aline Bottin and Oihana Almandoz.

Hantavirus and the lessons of Covid: Screening the EU's public health response

In this episode we explore how the EU deals with outbreaks of disease. The latest scare for Europeans has been the hantavirus, detected on cruise ship the MV Hondius, which subsequently docked in Spain. Experts have stressed that this virus is not like Covid-19 and is much less infectious. Nevertheless, the EU's civil protection mechanism was triggered, and several member states took part in evacuation flights from Tenerife in the Canary Islands. We discuss the current virus threats, including Ebola [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/ebola/], and ask what lessons the EU has learned from the Covid [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/coronavirus/] pandemic – and what it hasn't learned.   Programme prepared by Isabelle Romero, Perrine Desplats and Aline Bottin

EU facing 'second big wake-up call' on energy, Irish Minister Darragh O'Brien says

Our guest this week is Darragh O'Brien, Ireland's Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment and Minister for Transport. In his position, O'Brien has been directly involved in dealing with the fallout of the Middle East crisis, especially rising energy costs. O'Brien says Ireland [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/ireland/], like most EU states, hasn't really had an issue with fossil fuel supply despite the weeks-long closure of the Strait of Hormuz [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/strait-of-hormuz/], instead pointing to the rising cost of fossil fuels as the EU's main challenge. "In Ireland, our reserves are robust. We have no issue with supply at the moment, but I think for us in Ireland, like our EU colleagues, the issue is price."  Faced with nationwide protests over surging fuel prices, the Irish government has tried to respond by implementing concrete measures, including direct subsidies for low-income families. But O'Brien warns this can only be a short-term fix. "The longer this crisis goes on, no government is going to be able to deal with every single price increase. That's why it's imperative that the current situation is resolved." Watch moreEU unveils plan to tackle energy crisis [https://www.france24.com/en/eu-unveils-plan-to-tackle-energy-crisis] For him, the closure of Strait of Hormuz represents the EU's "second big wake-up call," after Russia [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/russia/]'s full-scale invasion of Ukraine [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/ukraine/] in February 2022, laying bare how vulnerable the bloc still is to foreign disruptions. According to the European Commission, the EU has spent an extra €24 billion on energy [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/energy/] imports since the start of the Iran war [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/iran-conflict/]. And data from the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis shows the bloc's imports of Russian liquefied natural gas are up 16 percent in the first quarter of 2026, reaching a record high since the start of the war in Ukraine. O'Brien admits increasing fossil fuel imports from Russia is "not the way forward" but believes the EU has learned its lesson when it comes to its dependency on imported fossil fuels. He points to efforts on renewables and electrification at the national and EU levels, but argues more needs to be done to accelerate the process.  Even if the Strait of Hormuz reopened tomorrow, O'Brien believes the EU must prepare for when, not if, the next crisis happens. "We've had Brexit [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/brexit/], we've had the pandemic, we've had the outbreak of war in Ukraine, we've had the tariff situation with the United States, and we now have the crisis in the Middle East [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/middle-east/] and the cost-of-living crisis. So we have six in less than 10 years. We need to prepare better for that, and we need to respond better." Programme prepared by Isabelle Romero, Perrine Desplats and Oihana Almandoz

Is Europe getting its act together on defence? Multiple threats prompt EU rearmament

The European Union is aiming to boost its defence capacities as part of a plan first called ReArmEU, when it was presented just over a year ago, and now known as Readiness 2030. This as European intelligence agencies warn that the bloc could face some form of major conflict by that date. Various threats have shifted the EU [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/european-union/] mindset when it comes to security: the war in Ukraine [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/ukraine/], of course, but also US President Donald Trump [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/donald-trump/]'s intimidation of fellow NATO [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/nato/] members, plus the war in the Middle East [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/middle-east/]. But concrete action has been hampered by fragmented defence [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/defence/] markets, industrial rivalries and different procurement systems. In this episode we look at what more the EU can do – and how it can inject more efficiency and common sense into what it is already doing. Programme prepared by Perrine Desplats, Isabelle Romero and Oihana Almandoz

'We need a decisive European pillar inside NATO': Parliamentary Assembly President Perestrello

Over the past year, NATO has been dealing with an unprecedented split between the US and other members of the alliance. Our guest is Marcos Perestrello, the president of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, a body that brings together legislators from NATO member countries. Perestrello is a former secretary of state for national defence in the Portuguese government. US President Donald Trump [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/donald-trump/] has repeatedly threatened the sovereignty of two founding members of NATO [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/nato/], Denmark [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/denmark/] and Canada [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/canada/], and he has lashed out at NATO countries for refusing his calls to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/strait-of-hormuz/] during the US and Israeli strikes on Iran [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/iran/]. In a fresh blow to the Atlantic alliance, Trump has announced the withdrawal of 5,000 American soldiers from Germany [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/germany/]. Read moreA look at the US military presence in Europe as Trump seeks to withdraw troops from Germany [https://www.france24.com/en/europe/20260504-what-to-know-us-military-presence-europe-trump-seeks-troop-drawdown-germany] While France [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/france/] is promoting the idea of a distinct European defence [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/defence/] capability, the strongly Atlanticist NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/mark-rutte/] refers to the notion of a European defence pillar as "a bit of an empty word". What does Perestrello think? "You need to build a European pillar inside NATO, capable of contributing decisively to the defence of the Euro-Atlantic region," he answers. "I think that's the point. It's not an empty pillar. It's a pillar built with European capabilities and European availability to assume responsibilities inside NATO. So I would say that you need to find the European pillar inside NATO, not outside. Because when the Secretary General says that we should not dream of being able to defend the European continent without the US, what he is saying is that if we go apart, we become weaker. If we work together, we become much stronger. Together, we were able to assure peace and safety in the Euro-Atlantic region for 80 years." Perestrello recently visited lawmakers in the US, and he insists that, despite Trump's threats against NATO, he found "strong support for the strengthening of the transatlantic bond, and strong support for the transatlantic alliance, both in the House (of Representatives) and in the Senate of the US." But Perestrello says there is also a recognition that "European countries need to do a lot more on the development of our defence capabilities". Referring to last year's NATO summit in The Hague, where members pledged to increase their defence spending to 5 percent of GDP by 2035, Perestrello remarks: "The targets are established. Now we need to settle and evaluate how this defence spending is increasing. How it is being put into effect. And that is the major thing that needs to be discussed in Ankara (at the NATO summit in July). All the countries are assuming their responsibilities. Even Spain [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/spain/] crossed the 2 percent (target) last year. And there's a role also for European leaders to call on the attention of the US administration that the commitments assumed are being accomplished. It's important that everybody knows that." On NATO's support for Ukraine [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/ukraine/], Perestrello says: "Frankly, I think we are not doing enough. What we are doing allows Ukraine to resist, allows Ukraine to inflict some damage on Russia [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/russia/], but it's not enough to put pressure on Russia and force them to sit at the table and seriously negotiate a ceasefire [https://www.france24.com/en/tag/ceasefire/] and a peace process." Programme prepared by Isabelle Romero, Oihana Almandoz and Perrine Desplats