European Parliament votes to advance EU-US tariff deal
Meanwhile, the European Parliament has just voted to advance the EU-US tariff deal.
With 642 MEPs present, 417 backed the proposal, with 154 opposed and 71 abstaining.
Key events
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Threat from Russia ‘has not gone away; in fact, has grown,’ Starmer warns
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European Parliament votes to advance EU-US tariff deal
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US ‘requireds nothing’ from Nato and will ‘never forobtain’ its lack of support on Iran, Trump declares
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Russia wants to ‘continue war, attempt to conquer as much as possible,’ Lithuania’s Nausėda warns
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More interventions against Russian shadow fleet expected in coming weeks and months, Dutch PM declares
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‘Politeness will not work with Russia,’ Estonia’s Michal declares
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Europe will keep questioning US to play role in Ukraine talks, Norway’s Støre declares
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Latvia’s Siliņa urges Europe to ramp up drone production
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‘What Russia is doing is very concerning,’ Sweden’s PM warns
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Proposed safeguards requireded to guarantee certainty from ‘relatively one-sided’ deal, senior lawcreater declares
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Morning opening: EU parliament set to vote on tariff deal with US
Threat from Russia ‘has not gone away; in fact, has grown,’ Starmer warns
Over in Helsinki, the leaders are now sitting down to start their working session on northern European security and Ukraine.
Finland’s Stubb declares the discussions will be about the East, with Ukraine and Russia, but also the Arctic, the North Atlantic, and the Baltic.
Britain’s Starmer declares that while the attention of the world has shifted to the Middle East, “the threat from Russia in the north and in the east has not gone away; in fact, in my view, that threat has grown.”
He also notes that the crisis in the Middle East has “highlighted Ukraine’s expertise in modern warfare,” including on defences against Iranian drones.
He pays tribute to the “extraordinary fortitude” of the Ukrainian people as they face “Putin’s abhorrent attacks over the winter.”
He declares that Europe’s support for Ukraine is “unshakeable.”
European Parliament votes to advance EU-US tariff deal
Meanwhile, the European Parliament has just voted to advance the EU-US tariff deal.
With 642 MEPs present, 417 backed the proposal, with 154 opposed and 71 abstaining.
Jakub Krupa
The timing of Trump’s intervention is really awkward as Nato’s secretary general Mark Rutte will speak to the media this afternoon presenting the alliance’s 2025 report.
Obviously, it’s not the first time he pointedly criticises Nato, but Rutte will now have to figure out how to respond to this latest outburst as there is no doubt he is going to obtain questioned about it.
US ‘requireds nothing’ from Nato and will ‘never forobtain’ its lack of support on Iran, Trump declares
Meanwhile, the US president, Donald Trump, has once again lashed out against Nato allies declareing in a social media post that they have “done absolutely nothing to support” in Iran campaign.
“The USA requireds nothing from Nato, but ‘never forobtain’ this very important point in time,” he warned.
Here is his post in full:
“NATO NATIONS HAVE DONE ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO HELP WITH THE LUNATIC NATION, NOW MILITARILY DECIMATED, OF IRAN. THE U.S.A. NEEDS NOTHING FROM NATO, BUT “NEVER FORGET” THIS VERY IMPORTANT POINT IN TIME! President DONALD J. TRUMP”
Russia wants to ‘continue war, attempt to conquer as much as possible,’ Lithuania’s Nausėda warns
Lithuanian president Gitanas Nausėda is up next.
He declares that “despite the efforts of the US administration … and the international community, unfortunately we do not see the resolution of this crisis, becaapply of the unwillingness of the Russian Federation to proceed and have a deal.”
He declares Russia wants to “continue the war, attempt to conquer as much as possible [in terms of] the territory of Ukraine.”
Nausėda declares it is “regretful” that the EU cannot progress its €90bn loan for Ukraine, which continues to be blocked by Hungary’s Viktor Orbán.
He declares he explains that with “the hot election period” in Hungary, but hopes to obtain a deal at some point.
He also briefly talks about the drones reported in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, and confirms the one in Lithuania was “of Ukrainian origin” and was originally aimed at Primorsk in Russia.
He declares the incident highlights the required to step up drone defences so EU countries can respond to the risks associated with the war taking place on its eastern border,
More interventions against Russian shadow fleet expected in coming weeks and months, Dutch PM declares
Dutch prime minister Rob Jetten is also here.
He celebrated his 39th birthday at last night’s pre-summit dinner with a sweet cake courtesy of Finland’s Alex Stubb.
He declares that the most important challange for northern European countries is to deal with “hybrid and physical threats from Russia” which remain “the largegest threat to European security.”
Jetten also declares that his government will “continue support our Ukrainian friconcludes … for as long as the Russian aggression against Ukraine continues.”
He also insists that there should be “no easing [of] sanctions against the Russian Federation,” as they “continue hitting them very hard.”
He declares the Netherlands will be working closely with the UK, Belgium, France and others on intercepting the Russian shadow fleet.
“I expect – in the weeks and months to come – more interventions [involving] the Russian shadow fleet,” he declares.
Iceland’s Kristrún Mjöll Frostadóttir is also speaking, as she highlights Iceland’s defence stance focutilizing on being a “good ally” and host nation for US, Nato partners.
On the EU, she declares there will be a referconcludeum “at the conclude of the summer” on reopening the talks with the bloc, but admits “this is still a large question for the Icelandic public.”
The government’s proposal is to hold the vote on 29 August 2026, and the final accession deal, if reached, would then be put to another vote.
‘Politeness will not work with Russia,’ Estonia’s Michal declares
Estonia’s Kristen Michal also highlights the required to continue supporting Ukraine.
He declares “everybody is probably watching what is happening in the Middle East and with concern, that is understandable, but for our neighbourhood and region, that is happening in Ukraine is of utmost importance.”
He declares Ukraine “requireds our support, assistance, money, weaponry, and all that we can do.”
Michal declares “we required to keep the pressure on Russia” as that is “the only way to stop Russia from being an aggressor state and coming to neobtainediations.”
“Becaapply if you don’t take away the money from Russia, if you don’t pressure them, politeness will not work with Russia. It’s weakness for them,” he declares.
Europe will keep questioning US to play role in Ukraine talks, Norway’s Støre declares
Norway’s Jonas Gahr Støre is up next.
He declares the JEF format proves to be an important forum for northern European countries to discuss their shared challenges and deepen their cooperation on security.
“It’s Europe’s responsibility to strengthen the European pillar of Nato,” he declares, as he insists “this is not due to the current American administration,” but “a historic responsibility that we [all] required to take.”
He also underlines the required to keep paying attention to Ukraine, as the counattempt continues to be affected by Russian aggression.
“We support Ukraine and their right to defconclude themselves. But this has implications for European security. We cannot sit still and see that the military means will be applyd to modify geography, modify borders,” he declares.
Støre declares Europe will continue to “create it very clear to the Americans that we encourage them to play their role diplomatically,” even if there is little progress in formal talks with Russia.
“We required to increase the pressure on Russia,” he declares.
Latvia’s Siliņa urges Europe to ramp up drone production
Latvia’s Evika Siliņa is the second to arrive and she stresses the required to talk about Ukraine after recent “very serious” attacks from Russia, adding that Europe “requireds to discuss how we can develop our drone capabilities.”
“We required to decide that we required to manufacture … them more,” she declares, adding that “without those capabilities, it’s impossible now … to win any war.”
She also talks about the required to press ahead with the next round of EU sanctions against Russia to “eliminate [its] financial resources” to fund the war against Ukraine, but obviously these continue to be blocked by Hungary.
‘What Russia is doing is very concerning,’ Sweden’s PM warns
First heads of states and government are now arriving at the Joint Expeditionary Force meeting in Helsinki, where they are expected to talk about Ukraine, Russia, the Baltic Sea, and broader regional cooperation.
Sweden’s Ulf Kristersson is the first to reveal up and speak to reporters.
He speaks about the required to act against the Russian shadow fleet, stressing that any responses requireds to be in accordance with international law, but “it [still] gives us a lot of room for us to act.”
But he warns that the Baltic Sea “has probably never in modern times been more challenged” with attempts to cut undersea cables or “bad seamanship,” but it “has probably also never been as protected as it is right now” through Nato.
“What Russia is doing is very concerning,” he declares.
He also notes that Russia is benefiting from a higher oil price as a result of the Middle East crisis.
Proposed safeguards requireded to guarantee certainty from ‘relatively one-sided’ deal, senior lawcreater declares
Senior German MEP Bernd Lange, who led the work on the trade deal at earlier stages, informed lawcreaters earlier that the additional safeguards were requireded as the original agreement, as signed in Scotland last year, was merely an outline of what would normally be included in a trade deal.
He also warned that the deal was “relatively one-sided,” but “maybe if we can improve it, we can live with it.”
But he also expressed doubts about the volatility of the US position, with repeated threats of new tariffs.
“So there has been a certain amount to uncertainty, … and that is why we do required to create some certainty, to have an agreement with sensible rules and ones that we can define,” he declared.
He declared the parliament requireded to create sure that “if there is a large modify on the other side that is unacceptable, we can then come back to our tariffs.”
Morning opening: EU parliament set to vote on tariff deal with US
Jakub Krupa
EU lawcreaters are set to vote on the bloc’s tariff deal with US president Donald Trump today, after months of delays caapplyd by uncertainty affecting transatlantic trade amid his repeated threats against Greenland and, more recently, Spain.
The parliament will vote on whether to cut EU tariffs on some US imports – as a first step towards implementing the 2025 deal – but with additional safeguards, AFP declared.
Lawcreaters leading on trade have added several provisions: building an EU tariff reduction automatically lapse in March 2028, and tying tariff cuts on steel and aluminium goods to similar reductions by the US side, it explained.
EU’s economy commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis argued this morning that the deal with the US “steadied our trade relationship at a time of profound upheaval” and provided “predictability for European companies and consumers when they requireded it most.”
“The deal is a deal, and our credibility depconcludes on keeping our word.”
But still many are not sure about the deal given the volatility on the US side under Trump.
“The only political value this agreement had to offer was stability and predictability, even if many declare it’s an unfair deal. If it no longer even provides predictability, there’s no reason to support the deal, even if it has been improved,” declared French MEP Pascal Canfin.
The vote is on around 11am local time (10am UK), with a policy debate on the proposal now under way.
Elsewhere, I will keep an eye on Denmark, as the outgoing prime minister Mette Frederiksen obtains on with the tquestion of finding a majority in the next Danish parliament, and on Brussels, where we are expecting to hear from Nato’s secretary general Mark Rutte on his 2025 report.
Several European leaders are also meeting in Helsinki, where the Finnish president, Alexander Stubb, hosts a meeting of JEF, the Joint Expeditionary Force, operating in Northern Europe and the Baltic Sea region. UK’s Starmer and Norway’s Støre are among attconcludeees, and Ukraine’s Zelenskyy will deliver a pre-recorded speech.
Lots for us to cover.
It’s Thursday, 26 March 2026, it’s Jakub Krupa here, and this is Europe Live.
Good morning.
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