{"id":725942,"date":"2026-01-28T08:19:11","date_gmt":"2026-01-28T08:19:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/725942\/"},"modified":"2026-01-28T08:19:11","modified_gmt":"2026-01-28T08:19:11","slug":"newsletter-costa-vouches-for-cooperation-over-confrontation-in-an-uncertain-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/725942\/","title":{"rendered":"Newsletter: Costa vouches for \u2018cooperation over confrontation\u2019 in an \u2018uncertain world\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

Good morning from Brussels. I\u2019m Mared Gwyn<\/strong>, taking you once again to our EU editor Maria Tadeo<\/strong> in New Delhi to start this morning\u2019s newsletter.<\/p>\n

Speaking to Maria last night after the signing of a landmark free trade deal between the EU and India, European Council President Ant\u00f3nio Costa hailed the agreement as a major economic opportunity and strategic victory in an \u201cuncertain world.\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cThe deal shows that it’s possible \u2013 in this very uncertain world \u2013 to provide predictability, when reliable partners agree on trade, on security, on defence, on people-to-people contact,\u201d Costa told Maria.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt has great value from an economic point of view,\u201d Costa added. \u201cBut perhaps more important is the message that the two largest democracies in the world are sending to the international community.\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s important, it’s essential to provide predictability to engage in cooperation instead of confrontation, and that reliable partners can work for good in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

The deal is set to slash tariffs on EU goods from wines to cars and hedge against escalating global trading tensions. Asked whether Trump\u2019s recent threats of an all-out trade war over Greenland had been the ultimate catalyst to seal the deal, Costa said: \u201cWe started these negotiations a lot of years ago, but of course when you are living in an unpredictable world, you need to provide predictability to the business (…) and to give hope and security for the citizens.\u201d<\/p>\n

The European Council President also confirmed that Mario Draghi and Enrico Letta \u2013 both former Italian Prime Ministers who have recently counseled the EU on its lagging competitiveness \u2013 willjoin an informal summit<\/strong><\/a>of EU leaders next month.<\/p>\n

The gathering is due to take place at Belgium\u2019s Alden Biesen castle on 12 February, with talks centered on how to restore the bloc\u2019s competitive edge and economic resilience amid deepening global volatility.<\/p>\n

President Donald Trump\u2019s protectionist trade policy and unpredictable foreign policy have reinforced some of the major calls of both Letta and Draghi\u2019s 2024 reports (the latter\u2019s called on the EU to get down to work on boosting its competitiveness or face \u201cslow agony\u201d).<\/p>\n

Costa said the retreat will serve to kickstart a cross-institutional debate on how to strengthen the European economy, and reinstate momentum around the recommendations made by Draghi and Letta in the blueprints they published in 2024.<\/p>\n

In other news this morning, our correspondent Sasha Vakulina spoke to Josef Aschbacher, the Director General of the European Space Agency, about how the US still invests six times more in public space funding than Europe as a whole, and China spends about 50% more than Europe, leading to a decline in the bloc’s global share. <\/p>\n

“It is very alarming because on one side Europe has excellent capabilities, our industries are among the best in the world,” Aschbacher said. But the US “is spending so much more” and “this is where we see a real risk that European companies may be pushed out of the market.” Watch.<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Meanwhile, the Danish and Greenlandic Prime Ministers are on a tour of European capitals to shore up support ahead of pending negotiations with the Trump administration on Greenland\u2019s future.<\/p>\n

Mette Frederiksen and Jens-Frederik Nielsen met Chancellor Friedrich Merz in Berlin last night and will move on to Paris for talks with President Emmanuel Macron later today as the nature of the deal sought by Trump remains unclear.<\/p>\n

Also in this newsletter: how Paris is resisting increasing calls for the EU to designate Iran\u2019s Revolutionary Guards as a terrorist organisation, and how Mark Rutte has come under fire for his most recent smooth-talking comments on Trump.<\/p>\n

France emerges as key holdout in EU talks on blacklisting Iran\u2019s Revolutionary Guard<\/p>\n

Momentum is building within the EU to designate Iran\u2019s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist organisation, after Italy shifted<\/strong><\/a> its stance on Monday and announced it would push for the move, our EU correspondent Ma\u00efa de la Baume<\/strong> reports<\/strong><\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n

According to diplomats, Rome had previously been reluctant to back the designation, but reversed course after new data highlighted the scale of Iran\u2019s recent violent crackdown on protesters. Some reports claim the death toll from the crackdown tops 30,000.<\/p>\n

Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said on X on Monday that he would propose adding the IRGC to the EU\u2019s terrorist list “in coordination with other partners” because \u201cthe sudden losses among the civilian population during the protests demand a clear response.\u201d Iran has summoned its Italian ambassador in response.<\/p>\n

While a large majority of the EU\u2019s 27 foreign ministers are expected to back the designation when they gather in Brussels on Thursday, diplomats say France remains the main obstacle. The decision requires the unanimous backing of all EU member states. French officials argue that fully cutting diplomatic ties with the Iranian regime carries significant risks and that listing the IRGC would be largely symbolic, as many of its members are already subject to EU sanctions under three categories: human rights abuses, nuclear proliferation, and military support for Russia\u2019s war against Ukraine.<\/p>\n

Ma\u00efa has the full story.<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Volodymyr Zelenskyy sets 2027 as target for Ukraine’s EU accession date<\/strong><\/p>\n

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has announced that his country is aiming to join the European Union in 2027. Posting on X after a phone conversation with the Austrian Chancellor Christian Stocker, Zelenskyy described EU membership as one of his country\u2019s security guarantees in a prospective agreement to end Russia\u2019s war.<\/p>\n

EU officials have long insisted that the bloc\u2019s enlargement policy is \u201cmerit-based\u201d and that candidate countries must hit a range of reform targets before they can become fully-fledged members. <\/p>\n

But the possible inclusion of a target date for Ukraine\u2019s accession in a future peace deal is torpedoing that policy, and forcing officials to contemplate overhauling how it integrates new members. <\/p>\n

An EU official tells our EU correspondent Sandor Zsiros<\/strong> reports that the model of \u201cgradual membership\u201d, where Kyiv would initially join without the full benefits of EU membership, is being contemplated as part of that overhaul.<\/p>\n

Sandor has the details.<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Rutte faces backlash for telling Europeans to ‘keep on dreaming’ about independence from US security<\/p>\n

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte has come under fire for saying that the EU should “keep on dreaming” about becoming independent from the US on security and defence, my colleague Jorge Liboreiro<\/strong> reports.<\/p>\n

Rutte \u2013 who famously called Trump \u201cdaddy\u201d and who was instrumental in convincing Trump to climb down on his recent threats over Greenland \u2013 told the European Parliament on Monday: “If anyone thinks here, again, that the European Union, or Europe as a whole, can defend itself without the US, keep on dreaming.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can’t. We can’t. We need each other.”<\/p>\n

Paris has struck back, with Foreign Minister Jean-No\u00ebl Barrot saying on X: “No, dear Mark Rutte. Europeans can and must take charge of their own security. Even the United States agrees. It is the European pillar of NATO.\u201d<\/p>\n

Asked by Jorge about Rutte\u2019s intervention, the European Commission\u2019s chief spokesperson Paula Pinho said the political focus should remain on making the EU “increasingly resilient” and “increasingly independent” on “various fronts”, including security and defence.<\/p>\n

“We have a positive story to tell in terms of how we’ve been able to reduce our dependence on imports of fossil fuels from Russia,” Pinho said on Tuesday afternoon. “Such dependencies are seen also in other areas: on defence, on critical raw materials.,”<\/p>\n

“We are engaged in doing all that needs to be done to reduce that dependence, to reduce that exposure.”<\/p>\n

Jorge has the full story.<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

More from our newsrooms<\/strong><\/p>\n

EU now has own ‘secure and encrypted’ satellite communication system, Kubilius says.<\/strong> The EU\u2019s defence chief said Tuesday that countries now have access to European-made “secure and encrypted” satellite communication, part of plans to reduce dependence on foreign space services, such as Musk\u2019s Starlink. Alice Tidey hasthe story<\/strong><\/a>.<\/strong> <\/p>\n

ICE agents’ role in Milan-Cortina Olympics sparks criticism in Italy.<\/strong> US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents will play a security role during the upcoming Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics, drawing the ire among some Italian officials on Tuesday, Gavin Blackburn reports.<\/strong> <\/a><\/p>\n

Iran protests death toll could surpass 30,000, reports claim.<\/strong> Casualty estimates from Iran’s ongoing protest crackdown range from approximately 3,100 according to state media to more than 30,000 cited by independent sources and medical professionals. Massoud Salari has more.<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Ex-FIFA president Sepp Blatter backs calls to boycott World Cup in the US.<\/strong> Blatter has backed a proposed fan boycott of World Cup matches in the United States because of the conduct of President Donald Trump and his administration at home and abroad. Gavin Blackburnhas the story.<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

We’re also keeping an eye on<\/strong><\/p>\n