Talking Europe

Catherine Nicholson interviews Stefano Sannino, the head of the EU's global network of 144 ambassadors and heads of delegation. The Secretary General of the European External Action Service addresses the West's concerns about the latest joint Russian-Belarusian military activities, warning that further EU sanctions against Minsk could be on the way. He also discusses the growing Russia-Iran military partnership, and touches on the EU's relations with China and the UK.

A wave of missile attacks the likes of which had not been seen in months: Russian missiles rained down on cities across Ukraine this week, including in Lviv, Kyiv, Zaporizhzhia, and many others. The attacks follow the explosions on the Kerch bridge that links Russia to the illegally annexed Crimean peninsula. In our debate at the European Parliament in Brussels, we discuss whether this marks an escalation by Vladimir Putin.

In an exclusive interview with FRANCE 24 following Russia’s recent missile attacks on Ukraine, Lithuania’s Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte said the reason civilians are being targeted is because Russia is “losing on the battleground”, and want to “create panic and exert pressure on Ukrainian society - and us”.

As the Scottish government pushes on with its bid to hold a referendum on leaving the United Kingdom, with a hearing scheduled at the British Supreme Court on October 11 and 12, Scotland's Cabinet Secretary for External Affairs Angus Robertson has told FRANCE 24 that his government is "not giving up". "We want friends in Europe to understand that we are in favour of a legal, constitutional route to independence. When it comes to that stage, we look forward to working with European nations," he explained.

It was the report that China hoped would never see the light of day. Just minutes before her mandate ended, the office of now-former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet published its long-overdue assessment of human rights in China's Xinjiang region. It contained damning findings of mass arbitrary detention of Uighur minority people, forced labour, torture, sexual and gender-based violence, as well as other atrocities which could legally be considered crimes against humanity. This chimes with the position of the European Parliament, which had already overwhelmingly voted to recognise the Chinese government's treatment of the Uighurs as such. But where does the EU go from here? We put the question to two MEPs.

"Serious damage" caused by "substantial explosions – not done by an amateur". That's the assessment of the EU’s Economy Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni after gas leaks were discovered in the Nord Stream pipelines between Russia and Germany earlier this week. The former Italian prime minister tells FRANCE 24 that currently there is insufficient evidence regarding who may have been responsible, and that the priority is to strengthen the security of the Nord Stream, Baltic and other pipelines and energy infrastructure in Europe.

As Vladimir Putin annexes four Ukrainian provinces, representing 15 percent of Ukraine's territory, the Czech Republic's Minister for European Affairs Mikulas Bek told FRANCE 24 that this is "totally unacceptable… the EU cannot step down from our support for Ukraine". After former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev declared earlier this week that Russia had the right to defend itself with nuclear weapons, Bek responded that if that did happen, "it would mean a total change in modern history, and would have heavy consequences even for present allies of Russia or neutral countries, which would be forced to take a position".

In the week when Russian President Vladimir Putin launched referendums in Russian-held parts of Ukraine and made a thinly veiled threat to use nuclear weapons against the West, Talking Europe speaks to the European Union's High Representative for Foreign Affairs, Josep Borrell.

Earlier this week, the United Nations General Assembly opened with a warning from the UN Secretary General that we are in a "suicidal war against nature". The European Union’s leaders have made it clear that they want the bloc to be a champion for climate. But given these words by Antonio Guterres, we ask whether that is really the case. Our guest is German MEP Peter Liese, who is leading intra-EU negotiations on the EU's carbon emissions trading scheme for the European Parliament.

As households and businesses face rising energy bills, the EU's Commissioner for Jobs and Social Rights is stressing the importance of supporting small and medium-sized businesses all over Europe. "A lot of households and household incomes depend on the survival of SMEs. That's why it's important to support businesses and particularly SMEs," Nicolas Schmit told FRANCE 24's Armen Georgian. Schmit also discussed the latest developments on minimum wages and the regulation of platforms such as Uber Eats and Deliveroo.