Dave Keating Profile picture
Jun 23, 2022 12 tweets 7 min read Read on X
BREAKING: #Ukraine has just been given EU candidate status
President #Zelensky’s reaction to #Ukraine being given 🇪🇺 candidate status:
Following the approval of candidacy status, President Zelensky has just dialed in to speak to the 27 EU leaders by video at #EUCO.

He is speaking to them now.
Presidents Macron, Michel & von Der Leyen now on their way to give a press conference.

Watch here: audiovisual.ec.europa.eu/en/ebs/live/1
The delay in making the Ukraine candidacy decision was apparently about debates over final statement on #Bosnia.

President Michel says the final agreed text promises to “breathe new life” into the country’s accession process. It has still not been given candidate status.
“There can be no better sign of hope for the citizens of Ukraine Moldova & Georgia in these troubled times” says 🇪🇺Commission President @VonDerLeyen. This strengthens them “in the face of 🇷🇺 aggression”

But she notes that they need to do their homework to move forward in process
“Right from the start of the conflict 🇪🇺 has been reacting” with a strong response, says 🇫🇷President @EmmanuelMacron.

“This strong united Europe has been up to the task”
Macron asked about this morning's Western Balkan summit debacle.

"Is it fair to North Macedonia? No. There's been a lot of pressure on Bulgaria in recent months, this is the result of a political crisis in Bulgaria, we can't pretend that's not happening."
#Macron expands on his European Political Community idea:

“We are seeing enlargement fatigue. Countries have been in this process for years and years, it’s terrible. But it’s difficult to carry out these reforms. That’s why I proposed EPC…”
“…OK you can join the EU, but it will take a lot of time. In the mean time we need to think much more quickly how we can stabilise our neighbourhood,” says #Macron.

“Let’s be honest, maybe we won’t always be living together in the same house. But we’ll be on the same street.”
Here is the carefully crafted final wording on #Bosnia #BiH that caused the delay in granting candidacy status to #Ukraine today.

#Croatia & #Slovenia said it was insulting to give candidate status to 🇺🇦🇲🇩 and not 🇧🇦 today.
#EUCO leaders will now discuss Macron’s proposed European Political Union tonight.

So far there hasn’t been any serious objection to the idea, probably because it is so lacking in detail.

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More from @DaveKeating

Feb 2
Tonight the controversial US ambassador to Belgium Bill White was supposed to speak on a Film & Politics panel about European dependence.

He apparently pulled out on short notice. So the moderator @Sanchelen, editor-in-chief of EU Observer, asked the panellists what they would have said to him if he was there.

Latvian MEP @MStakis (former mayor of Riga) said "I would warn him that he is losing the people's hearts and minds in Europe dramatically. It could be quite dangerous. And it's happening so quickly"

"For a country like mine which was the biggest fan of the US in Europe, the friends around me now feel completely differently."Image
Erika Staël von Holstein from the think tank @ReImagineEuropa said that if the US Ambassador had turned up, "I would have said thank you for bringing us together and making us stronger. And it would have annoyed him."

"This is the strategic risk they fail to see. Europe is going to get stronger from this, and the US will get weaker. It takes decades to build trust, and it's being lost rapidly."

"The sense of the American dream which was so powerful for so long, is gone. But what is the european dream? We don't know yet."Image
Isabelle Schwarz from the European Cultural Foundation warned that Europe's previous relationship with America is now gone.

"Nostalgia is not a strategy, it will not come back," she said.

"The danger is that through this succumbing to the desires of others, we risk losing not just power but the greatest strategic risk is losing Europeans."Image
Read 4 tweets
Jan 22
#EUCO summit over. Council chair Costa giving closing presser. No national briefings.

"We believe that relations between partners and allies should be managed in a cordial and respectful way," he says. "Europe and the US have a shared interest in the security of the arctic" Image
"I want to be very clear: the Kingdom of Denmark and Greenland have the full support of the European Union," says @eucopresident.

"Only 🇩🇰🇬🇱 can decide on matters concerning 🇩🇰🇬🇱."
Costa welcomes Trump backing off on his tariff threats.

"Our focus must now be on moving forward on the implementation of that deal" he says. "The goal remains the effective stabilisation of the trade relatons between the EU & US."

"At the same time the EU will continue to stand up for its interests, and will defend itself, its' member states, its citizens and its companies against any form of coercion. It has the power and the tools to do so, and will do so if and when necessary."
Read 8 tweets
Dec 24, 2025
It begins.

The EU lawmaker who was in charge of digital affairs during 🇪🇺President von der Leyen's 1st term has been banned from the US, because the 🇺🇸 tech giants and government don't like the EU's tech laws.

What will be the 🇪🇺President's response? theguardian.com/technology/202…
A critical test.

🇪🇺President VDL notoriously loathes her former digital commissioner. But if she and Macron let stand that the US can ban EU lawmakers simply because the government doesn't like EU laws, that is a watershed moment in European servility.
unherd.com/newsroom/von-d…
Still no response yet from 🇪🇺President @VonDerLeyen to 🇺🇸government following through on its threat to sanction 🇪🇺lawmakers over digital laws.

But Commission put out an official reaction and the Council chair Antonio Costa put this out 20 minutes ago:
Read 4 tweets
Oct 9, 2024
In ten minutes Viktor Orban begins his debate with the 🇪🇺Parliament.

MEPS are expected to demand that he unequivocally states he will accept the result of the 🇺🇸election. Concerns have been raised after he reminded in a press conference yesterday that he's planning to use the Council presidency to host an informal meeting of EU prime ministers and presidents in Budapest 3 days after the 🇺🇸election - at a time when it is very likely Trump will be challenging the result if Harris wins.

"We will open several bottles of champagne if Trump is back," Orban told journalists.

In 2020, Orban and his ally Janez Jansa from Slovenia initially refused to recognise Biden's win.
Orban has entered the chamber.

Parliament speaker Roberta Metsola says introducing him: "The Hungarian presidency arrives at an important moment of institutional change [start of new term after 🇪🇺election] - a new mandate here brings new challenges and opportunities." Image
"Europe may not be perfect, and while we must be honest where we can do better, we must also not shy away from celebrating our successes," says 🇪🇺Parliament speaker Metsola.

"Prime minister, many of us recall the very lively debate [with you] 6 years ago here in the chamber. I expect no less today. Because in this house of democracy, as in Europe where the rule of law and freedom of expression are sacrosanct, we may not always agree but we will always give space for the respectful sharing of views."Image
Read 25 tweets
Jun 19, 2024
Breaking: The European Commission is opening an 'excessive deficit procedure' against France for the first time.

This should have happened long ago, but France's power in Brussels for years made the Commission look away.

How will this impact the 🇫🇷legislative election? Image
Procedure also started for 🇮🇹🇵🇱🇧🇪🇭🇺🇲🇹🇸🇰

Romania currently the only country already under the excessive deficit procedure. Commission announces it will stay there.

The rules are meant to prevent a repeat of the 💶debt crisis, making countries tighten fiscal policy or face fines.
🇫🇷 had the 2nd-highest deficit (5.5%) in🇪🇺 in 2023, after 🇮🇹

For years EU officials openly acknowledged that France was getting special treatment, with 🇪🇺President Juncker famously explaining why France wasn't being put under the procedure by saying: "Parce que c'est la France"
Read 6 tweets
Apr 25, 2024
🇫🇷President @EmmanuelMacron's much previewed speech on the future of 🇪🇺 is about to start.

Watch live with English interpretation here: youtube.com/live/tkDUSYHoK…
#Macron opens his speech by saying this. isa follow-up to his speech about Europe 7 years ago. He says he wanted to see more progress by now.

But he notes: "European sovereignty - a term that may have seemed very French 7 years ago" has now been embraced.
Macron says the EU has weathered several crises over the past 7 years, including #Brexit (plus Covid & Russia).

But he says the union remained strong in the face of these challenges, and as a result, nobody speaks about leaving the union anymore.
Read 15 tweets

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