France ‘regrets’ EU move to provisionally apply Mercosur deal
Meanwhile, we are getting first reactions from EU member states to the provisional application of the Mercosur deal, and France – which led the opposition to the agreement – is deeply unhappy.
“It is a decision that I regret,” French agriculture minister Annie Genevard told reporters at the Salon de l’Agriculture following EU chief Ursula von der Leyen’s announcement.
“It is not in line with the respect that should have been shown for the European Parliament’s decision.”
She denounced the provisional application as “very damaging to the functioning of our institutions and, above all, to the spirit of our European institutions,” AFP reported.
Key events
Zelenskyy moves to engage with Fico instead of Orbán – snap analysis
Jakub Krupa
Zelenskyy’s move of inviting Slovakia’s Fico to Ukraine will likely be seen as an attempt to de-escalate the issue while isolating Hungary’s Orbán as he faces a difficult parliamentary campaign.
As Orbán has been ramping up the use of fiercely anti-Ukrainian rhetoric – to the point of putting Zelenskyy on some AI-generated election posters and claiming that Ukraine could actively seek to harm Hungarian energy grid – it is almost certain to be easier for Ukraine to engage with the Slovak prime minister instead.
Let’s keep an eye on what comes out of that – and Fico will no doubt tell us what he thinks about all of this soon, as he is not usually one to hold back.
Zelenskyy invites Slovakia’s Fico to discuss ‘all existing issues’
In an almost immediate response, we are hearing from the Ukrainian president Zelenskyy’s office that he is now holding a phone call with Slovakia’s Fico.
He has invited Fico to Ukraine to “discuss all existing issues,” Zelenskyy’s office said, as reported by Reuters.
Hungary’s Orbán teams up with Slovakia’s Fico to put pressure on Ukraine over Druzhba pipeline
Back to Druzbha pipeline, Hungary’s Viktor Orbán has just announced that he spoke with the Slovak prime minister, Robert Fico, and the pair agreed to form “a joint investigative committee” to “clarify” the contested condition of the pipeline.
In a clip on social media, he said that both countries were affected by what he called “an oil blockade” by Ukraine, a claim contested by both Ukraine and the EU.
He also repeated his claim that Kyiv’s explanations that the pipeline is not operational due to Russian damage was “not true,” and alleged that it “has been shut down exclusively for political reasons.”
He urged Zelenskyy to allow the inspectors to access the pipeline for further inspections.
Remember: the spat with Ukraine comes amid a difficult electoral campaign for Orbán, who is at risk of being ousted after 16 years in power in the upcoming parliamentary vote in April.
France ‘regrets’ EU move to provisionally apply Mercosur deal
Meanwhile, we are getting first reactions from EU member states to the provisional application of the Mercosur deal, and France – which led the opposition to the agreement – is deeply unhappy.
“It is a decision that I regret,” French agriculture minister Annie Genevard told reporters at the Salon de l’Agriculture following EU chief Ursula von der Leyen’s announcement.
“It is not in line with the respect that should have been shown for the European Parliament’s decision.”
She denounced the provisional application as “very damaging to the functioning of our institutions and, above all, to the spirit of our European institutions,” AFP reported.
EU says Orbán’s proposal for joint inspection of Druzbha pipeline is ‘welcome step’ to de-escalate tensions over oil flows
The European Commission got also asked about Viktor Orbán’s latest plan to inspect the Druzhba pipeline for damage as he continues to question the Ukrainian explanation on why oil transit to Hungary and Slovakia is disrupted (10:21, Europe Live yesterday).
An EU spokesperson said it was “a welcome step,” and the bloc is “in contact with the Ukrainian authorities on this matter” to see how to take this forward.
However, they also stressed that they remain strongly of the view that the disruption was caused by Russian attacks on Ukrainian and European energy security.
Trade with Mercosur could start in two months, EU spokesperson says
Lisa O’Carroll
Trade between the EU and two South American countries may start within two months under a provision application of the Mercosur deal.
“The law allows the provisional application of the deal can happen two months after notification has been exchanged between both sides in the form of a ‘note verbale’ that the deal will enter into provision application.”
Gill said he expected the other Mercosur countries, including Paraguay, Argentina, Bolivia, and Brazil, to ratify the deal soon.
“Mercosur countries are ratifying at a rate of knots, so I can anticipate that the remaining Mercosur four countries will also ratify,” said Gill.
Lisa O’Carroll
EU’s Gill also said that the European Commission’s president, Ursula von der Leyen, had been in touch with EU leaders ahead of the decision, and they “empowered the Commission to take a decision on provisional application”.
“The president reached out to member states and to MEPS, that’s what it means. She reached out to member states and MEPs, and I remind you that the member states as the European Council, endorsed and approved the EU Mercosur agreement and empowered the European Commission to move forward with provisional application.”
Jakub Krupa
Repeatedly pushed on the deal at the commission’s midday briefing, Gill also insisted that “the processes by which this agreement have been brought forward approved and now entered into provision application are in line with the treaties governing the European Union for which all European institutions have given their consent.”
EU defends provisional application of Mercosur deal
Lisa O’Carroll
The EU has said the decision to go ahead with the Mercosur deal with two countries in the South American bloc was an important move in the present unstable geopolitical environment.
“We want to deliver tangible benefits for our businesses, workers and citizens, and we want to deliver them ASAP,” said the European Commission spokesperson Olof Gill.
“We need to move forward with this agreement that is so important for the European Union and for its future prospects, economically, diplomatically, strategically.”
An exchange of notifications between the EU and Uruquay and Argentina must take place before trade can commence but that “will happen” soon, Gill indicated.
It was imperative that the EU used is “first mover advantage, because if we wait, others may overtake us”.
Provisional application of Mercosur deal puts von der Leyen on collision course with EU lawmakers – snap analysis
Lisa O’Carroll
The European Commission’s decision to provisionally apply the contested Mercosur trade deal is a bold move by Ursula von der Leyen that puts her on a collision course with the European Parliament.
Her decision comes after two countries in the Mercosur bloc of South American countries, Uruguay and Argentina, ratified the deal in their own parliaments.
But opponents to the deal, including France and Ireland, have already tried to stall the deal in the European Parliament by referring the deal to the European court of justice.
Trade is the competence of the European Commission but it is a risky political move to press ahead with a deal while it has not got the backing of the European Parliament.
The hope in the Commission will be that if they can now open up trade routes to Uruguay and Argentina and show growth in trade and diversifies supplies from China they could win the longer term political battle.
European Commission moves ahead with provisional application of contested Mercosur trade deal
The European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, said the EU will provisionally apply the contested EU-Mercosur free trade agreement.
Speaking from Brussels, she said that the European Council had last month empowered the commission to provisionally apply the agreement as soon as the first Mercosur country ratifies it, and as Uruguay and Argentina did that yesterday, the commission wants to move ahead with the plan.
“Provisional application is, by its nature, provisional; it is right there in the name. In line with the EU treaties the agreement can only be fully concluded once the European parliament has given its consent,” she said.
Last month, EU lawmakers referred the deal to the bloc’s top court amid continuing opposition to the deal from the agricultural sector and a number of countries, including France, Ireland and Poland.
Ukraine shot down drone near Romanian border, Bucharest says
Ukraine shot down a drone close to the border with Romania during a Russian attack on Ukrainian port infrastructure early on Friday, Romania’s defence ministry said in comments reported by Reuters.
The ministry said in a statement that it had scrambled fighter jets to monitor the attack and that the drone was brought down 100 metres (110 yards) from the Romanian village of Chilia Veche, which lies across the Danube River from Ukraine.
Romania, which is a member of the European Union and Nato, shares a 650-km (400-mile) land border with Ukraine. Drones have breached its airspace and fragments of drones have fallen on its territory repeatedly since Russia began attacking Ukrainian ports across the Danube during its war in Ukraine.
Romania has legislation in place enabling it to shoot down drones during peacetime if lives or property are at risk, but has not yet made use of it, Reuters noted.
Denmark’s Frederiksen in good spot ahead of March elections as campaign gets under way, new polls show
Fresh opinion polls ahead of Denmark’s 24 March parliamentary election showed prime minister Mette Frederiksen’s Social Democrats nearing a majority with left-wing parties, indicating an end to nearly four years of cross-partisan government, Reuters said.
Two surveys showed the left-leaning bloc led by Frederiksen winning 87-88 seats in Denmark’s 179-seat parliament, according to polls by Epinion and Megafon for broadcasters DR and TV2, just short of the 90 needed for a majority.
The right-leaning bloc led by defence minister Troels Lund Poulsen of the Liberal Party was projected to win 73 and 77 seats in the two polls.
Croatia offers to help resolve stand-off between Hungary and Ukraine
It’s six weeks until Hungary will go to the polls and Viktor Orbán increasingly battles for his political future as he faces a realistic prospect of being ousted after 16 years in power.
My colleagues Flora Garamvolgyi and Ashifa Kassam looked more closely at how Orbán uses Ukraine to mobilise his support amid worsening poll figures suggesting that he could lose power to the Tisza opposition party, led by Péter Magyar.
Hungary continues to block the EU’s €90bn loan to Ukraine and the 20th round of sanctions against Russia over the disrupted oil supply via the Druzbha pipeline. Ukraine says the interruption is caused by recent Russian strikes and the pipeline requires substantial repairs first, but Budapest continues to question these explanations.
But a new option for resolving the standoff seems to be emerging, with Croatia offering to carry deliveries via its Adria pipeline instead.
Croatian prime minister Andrej Plenković said the Adria pipeline can transport up to 15m tonnes of oil a year, enough to fully meet the needs of both Hungary and the other affected country, Slovakia.
But some observers worry whether it’s really just about oil deliveries or, perhaps, about a strong campaign theme for Orbán, which would give him less of an incentive to actually resolve the problem before 12 April?
Let’s see. It’s six weeks to go.
Morning opening: Russia, Ukraine agree on temporary ceasefire to repair lines to Zaporizhzhia plant
Jakub Krupa
A local ceasefire around the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant in southeastern Ukraine has been agreed, with the help of the International Atomic Energy Agency, to allow for necessary repairs of the backup power lines to the plant.
The IAEA has confirmed that a local arrangement has been reached to help the repair teams ensure the safety of the plant, with demining activities in the area ongoing to enable access.
Reuters noted that the plant, Europe’s largest, has been under Russian control since shortly after the start of the war in 2022. It is not currently producing electricity, and relies on external power to keep its nuclear material cool and avoid a catastrophic accident.
Russia and Ukraine have frequently accused each other of jeopardising safety at the plant by staging attacks nearby. The repairs are expected to last for at least a week, according to Russia.
The peace talks between Ukraine, Russia and the US are now expected to resume next month.
“We need to finalise everything achieved so far for real security guarantees and prepare a meeting at the leaders’ level. This is the format that can resolve many issues. At the end of the day, leaders decide key issues and when it comes to Russia … this is relevant even more than in other countries,” Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelenskyy said last night.
It’s Friday, 27 February 2026, it’s Jakub Krupa here, and this is Europe Live.
Good morning.
