Europe Today: Trump claims Ukraine-Russia energy ceasefire as Baltics stay on alert

Good morning. It's Monday, October 12th. You're watching Euronews and this is Europe Today. Coming up, Riyadh's international airport remained closed on Sunday after an attack killed 12 people. The strike drew condemnation from the United Nations and the European Union as the Iran-backed Houthis renewed their threats and Washington considered its response. US President Trump Trump said his government might join strikes against the Houthi rebels, something he was so far reluctant to do. Ukrainian drones hit a data center of a company being dubbed Russia's Google yesterday, forcing the facility near Moscow to pause operations. It was the third attack on the Russian tech giant Yandex in one week. Hours later, President Trump announced an energy ceasefire. The latest attack came after President Zelensky had heavily criticized Trump's diesel deal with Moscow, which will see millions of tons of Russian diesel released into the US. And authorities in Poland have arrested a man who was planning to assassinate Prime Minister Donald Tusk and his defense minister, according to police sources. The man had reportedly sent threatening emails to security services, which prompted a crisis meeting of top officials yesterday. Poland has already been on high alert after a series of school stabbings and fears of a possible Russian hybrid attack. Welcome to the program, I'm Stefan Grobe. US President Donald Trump says Russia and Ukraine have agreed to an immediate ceasefire on attacks against energy infrastructure. Trump announced the agreement on Truth Social, saying that both parties have agreed. The announcement comes just a day after Trump called for Ukraine to replace President Zelensky, accusing Kiev, rather than Moscow, of standing in the way of peace. And on Friday, Trump announced the controversial deal with Vladimir Putin to ease sanctions on Russian diesel exports, drawing sharp criticism from Kiev and Europe. In this situation, we need the analysis of our Ukraine correspondent, Sasha Vakulina, who is here with me in the studio right now. Good morning, Sasha. Good morning. So a lot to unpack here, but first on the ceasefire. Yeah. Trump says both sides have agreed, but Zelensky's response suggested that, you know, he wasn't aware of any deal. So what has been agreed upon and whatever it is, is it in effect? Indeed, even now, hours later, it's not clear whether this is the deal agreed between and with Kyiv and Moscow or whether this is a unilateral declaration. as the one we already heard from Donald Trump earlier in September when he said that there was another energy ceasefire which actually never materialized. Now, this is what Donald Trump said on Truth Social. He said, effective immediately, there is an energy ceasefire in the war between Russia and Ukraine. Both parties have agreed. Do not break it. Now, Kyiv and Volodymyr Zelensky have been pitching the idea of energy ceasefire for months, Stefan, given the fact that Russia is deliberately knocking out all of ukraine's energy infrastructure and even yesterday and the day before yesterday in some of the neighborhoods of Kyiv there were over 20 hours without any electricity this is how the situation is bad already now in october but it's not clear because this is what zelensky said following donald trump's statement and the ceasefire that he announced it is important that this becomes a reality ukraine supports all realistic and reliable formats for a ceasefire and an end to the war. Ukraine is prepared not to carry out strikes against Russia's energy sector, and we are counting on a similar willingness on Russia's part and on an agreement from the President of the United States of America on this matter. We welcome such an agreement. What is included in this idea? Because there is also information that this deal is rather refinery for refinery if that is the case this is very tricky because there's only one big refinery in Ukraine which has already been damaged by Russia and this is of course not the case in Russia where Ukraine is targeting specifically oil refineries to to to to make sure that Russia does not have more money to prolong its war while what Moscow is targeting is civilian energy infrastructure stuff and so this is where it's not clear what's in the deal such as there seems to be a striking change in Trump's tone towards Zelensky, saying he's standing in the way of peace, he should be replaced, which reminds me of that infamous Oval Office meeting with Trump, J.D. Vance and Zelensky. What does it tell us about the current relationship between the U.S. and Ukraine? You know, the only one, Stefan, everybody had this sort of a flashback of that famous scandal in the Oval Office in February 2025, when Zelensky was accused of not being grateful not saying thank you and so on and so forth things have changed since though because while the United States and the Donald Trump administration clearly trying to put more pressure on Zelensky to force Kyiv into a deal to force Kyiv into more concessions the U.S. has less leverage if we compare the situation to what was happening in 2021 so let's realistically look at what can Washington do now to put even more pressure on Kyiv now there are a options here on the table there could be they could stop sharing intel and that would be very dangerous thing obviously for Ukraine in defending itself from Russia's war there could be some issues with the or cut off Starlink connection which of course is also a very crucial aspect for the armed forces of Ukraine or there could be some cuts with pure this is prioritized Ukraine requirement list this is how the United States selling weapon to Europe for Ukraine so there are these three options that are being discussed when it comes to pearl though this is also something that brings billions to the United States and to Washington so I would say this is probably going to be the last option for Washington realistically speaking of looking into but when it comes to the pressure over elections Zelensky said that if there is a ceasefire for at least 60 days he is ready to organize elections notably Donald Trump did not mention any possibility or any need for elections or change of the leadership in Russia Stefan All Right, Sasha Vakulina reporting for us here. And please keep doing what you're doing going forward. And now let's head straight to Warsaw, where Zelensky is set to address the security conference as he seeks to shore up support from European allies. Our chief editor, Maria Tadeu, joins us from the Polish capital. She'll also be speaking to Poland's finance minister later today. Good morning, Maria. What can we expect from Zelensky's address and how important is European support for Kiev at this critical moment? Well, good morning, Stefan. The president or the message from the president of Ukraine will be one of coordination and alignment. Obviously, a very turbulent weekend. You just debriefed the tensions both over the Russian diesel deal, but also the comments and the criticism escalating from the president of the U.S. saying Ukraine now needs a new leader, one that, quote, can actually make a deal to that point and amid that pressure. Yesterday, the president of Ukraine, Zelensky, had a phone call with the head of the commission, Ursula von der Leyen, an emergency call. They're not calling that, they're not putting that name on it, but essentially that's what it is. The head of the commission sent out a readout saying that she does support an energy ceasefire if that means that Ukrainian energy infrastructure will be spared from Russian attacks. She also said, quote, she has a full support to President Zelensky. A lot of that politically has to be seen in the context of those comments from President Trump indicating that Zelensky is not the right man to lead the country. The head of the commission saying the opposite. She also added that this is a man who's, quote, fighting for the freedom of his country. She also said that Ukraine will be front and center at the European summit on Thursday. We are expecting President Zelensky to be there in person in Brussels. She said that they will talk about financing and they will talk about money for drones and missiles. But the question, the money question, is a difficult one, Stefan, because for the time being and up until now, it's the Europeans that are very much providing the bulk of the financing. They pay for the weapons through NATO. The U.S. no longer pays for any of the expenses related to the war for the Europeans. This is a tricky question. and the head of the commission also says that the EU will put together a global effort to get global funding for Ukraine. Obviously, this is a money question, and winter has not even started yet. All right, our EU editor Maria Tadeo from the Warsaw Security Forum, thank you very much. As we've heard, Europe's eastern flank is facing another moment of heightened tension. Latvia and its Baltic neighbours are, once again, on alert amid growing concerns over Russian drones, airspace violations and a broader campaign of hybrid pressure against NATO One of the top topics at the EU's Foreign Affairs Council in Luxembourg today Is Moscow testing Europe's resolve? And how close are we to a dangerous escalation? We'll put these questions now to Latvia's Foreign Minister, Baiba Braže Good morning, madam, great to have you on Good morning from Luxembourg City. We are at the EU Foreign Affairs meeting. Wonderful. So a lot has happened over the past 48 hours around Latvia. What is your assessment of the security situation in the region right now? How serious is the threat? I think in the big picture, there hasn't been significant change. Russia is stuck in Ukraine. Ukraine is defending herself, Russia is not only advancing but actually losing some of the ground in Donbas and Russia is unable to challenge NATO militarily but of course Russia's war the doctrine doesn't include only conventional military uh tactics it also includes sub-military sub-conventional warfare and that is what sometimes is called hybrid which is too fluffy and too too nice to actually be characterised what it is is sabotage if necessary it's killing of people threats to the chiefs of military companies or actual possible implementation of those threats if necessary we saw attack on on Leipzig airport uh massive cyber attacks constant cyber attacks everywhere information disinformation attacks hostile activities elsewhere so it's everything that doesn't necessarily involve direct military attack, but it's still part of Russia's doctrine. Madam, are you concerned that what we are seeing is moving beyond hybrid warfare into a more direct military confrontation with Russia? And does Moscow feel emboldened by Trump's pressure campaign? As I said, for now, the military evaluation and assessment is the same for the whole of NATO, also here in the Baltic states, that Russia is unable to challenge NATO so that means it cannot uh militarily uh attack because it doesn't have sufficient capabilities and and again it's stuck in Ukraine but of course we see other developments we see that Belarus enabled by Russia is pushing massive groups of illegal migrants against border of EU and NATO and that's the border in Latvia so we are defending that border but we see uh that there is an organizational sort of aspect to it all that it's not just happening by itself and and groups of 20 or more people trying to climb over the border tunnels you know people stealing cameras on the border so so there is a sort of tension quite clearly that is that is present and and do you believe NATO's eastern flank is sufficiently protected today yes or no uh yes we have 14 allies with us here in Latvia um Canadians you know neighbors and Polish and Slovaks and others so we have not only Latvian own defense forces but also our NATO allies together and various capabilities for the air for the land for the sea to make sure that we deter NATO is deterrence NATO's KPI is peace it's a peace organization and it has been successful since its foundation in 1949 so we have to continue that all right Baiba Braže the Latvian foreign minister thank you so much for your time this morning. The Saudi capital Riyadh is facing a major security crisis after a deadly missile attack on King Khalid International Airport killed at least 12 people and injured more than 300. Saudi Arabia is vowing a firm response, while the Houthis, suspected to be behind the attack, are warning airlines and passengers to stay away from Saudi airports. With Riyadh's main airport closed and tensions escalating, the question now is how far this confrontation could spread and whether the U.S. could be drawn directly into it. For more on this, let's head over to Doha to our correspondent Laila Humaira. Good morning, Laila. So Saudi Arabia is dealing with the aftermath of this deadly attack on Riyadh's airport. What's the latest? Good morning, Stefan. That's right. As you said, for the second straight day, Houthi rebels have struck the Saudi Arabian capital, plunging the region deeper into a major security crisis. On On Sunday, a new Houthi projectile hit passenger terminals at Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport, causing a fire to break out and multiple injuries. That, of course, follows Saturday's devastating strike, which killed 12 people and injured more than 300 others. Now, as you said, all operations in the main airport have been fully suspended and the Houthi rebels have claimed responsibilities for these attacks. But they've also accused the Saudi-led coalition of killing civilians at its airport in the capital Sana'a over the last couple of days. Now, in Washington, D.C., U.S. President Donald Trump says that he has condemned these attacks, but he has also stated that they are weighing, considering, possibly joining the military campaign against Houthi rebels in Yemen. Of course, the Houthi rebels have since now targeted a lot of Saudi Arabia's energy, key civilian and air infrastructure as well. Now, all these escalations, Stefan, point to a continuation of the war and effectively opening up a new front in this regional conflict. We're possibly looking at months of uncertainty and instability in this region. And Laila, Iran has been carrying out major missile tests, indicating that it's ready to be in this war longer than we thought capable. At the same time, the U.S. seems to be reassessing and repositioning its assets and bombers in the region too. What does this mean for the war, even as de-escalation efforts remain in place? That's right. As you say, Iran has raised the regional stakes to a whole new level by test firing multiple ballistic missiles. Now, experts say this shows, clearly confirms, how much Tehran is capable still of producing those drones and missiles, even after months of heavy bombing that the U.S. on its side has also been reassessing its military assets in the region, redeploying bombers and refueling planes and aircraft carriers and such. And US President Donald Trump has ruled out any new military action before the November 3rd midterm elections But Iranian officials have said that they will ignore any sort of rhetoric coming out of the White House Essentially saying that they are locked in for a prolonged and long-term conflict And of course this is... that's all, thanks Alright, that was our correspondent Laira Humaira in Doha, thank you very much From the Middle East to France now The country is facing a dangerous economic and political balancing act. Thousands of students are taking to the streets, demanding more resources and better conditions, while the government is struggling to repair public finances already under severe pressure. With the deficit around 5% of GDP and public debt approaching 120%, Paris has very little room to spend its way out of the crisis. So, how serious is the risk of a wider economic and political crisis? To get to the bottom of this, I'm now joined by French economist and essayist Nicolas Bouzou. Good morning to you. Good morning. So, you said already in June that the situation in France was a catastrophe. Well, things haven't gotten any better since. Is France the sick man of Europe? Yeah, I think that the situation is very tough because we are at the end of the system. I mean that we have in France, as you know, a very big welfare state, very large, so it's a good thing. But the economic growth is not more strong to be able to support this welfare state. And that's why we suffer from a huge deficit, from a rising public debt. And the most worrying point is that our long-term interest rate, they are going to 5%. And economists know that 5% for an economy like France is an unsustainable interest rate. I mean that the public debt is automatically rising. So, yes, it's quite a difficult situation. Nicolas, what worries financial markets more, France's level of debt, its persistent deficits, or the apparent political inability to agree on spending cuts? Both. The public debt is huge, but other countries have a big public debt. So I think that the main problem is a public deficit. I mean, the fact that we are not able to reduce our public debt. But the second problem, you're perfectly right, is the political uncertainty, because the government has not a majority at the parliament but we have a presidential election in five months which is a very very large far right can win but far left can win and their program are not very precise in the challenge of the public debt and and looking ahead at the presidential election next year with both extremes gaining ground is the worst yet to come very briefly no in in france the the economic situation basically we have some strengths electricity a very strong corporate sector a government which is quite competent i mean so i think that basically the the situation is not so bad but we we are facing a big problem of public finance so it's true but if we solve that France will be all right that's all we have time for Nicolas Bouzou. Thank you so much for helping us understand what's going on in France right now. That does it for us today. Thank you for watching. I'm Stefan Grober and I'll see you tomorrow.