Latest news bulletin | December 3rd – Midday - video Dailymotion

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00:00During a surprise visit to Kiev on Monday, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz defended his

00:06country's refusal to send Ukraine Taurus long-range missiles, but stressed that his support for

00:12the country remains strong.

00:15With regard to individual weapon systems, we have a certain assessment whether it is

00:20right to provide them or not.

00:22This has something to do with the range and the necessity to control the target.

00:28And that's why we said no.

00:30But that doesn't reduce our support, which is very comprehensive.

00:34And it is important to me to say that it will also remain comprehensive.

00:39Scholz's visit is the first time in more than two years, and comes just weeks after Ukrainian

00:44President Volodymyr Zelensky criticized him for having a phone call with Russian President

00:49Vladimir Putin.

00:51Zelensky said that German air defense systems have saved tens of thousands of people in

00:55Ukraine, but also said support should increase.

00:59During the visit, Zelensky took Scholz to a military hospital where they spoke with

01:03wounded soldiers.

01:05He also showed Scholz through an exhibition of drone equipment, showcasing domestically

01:09produced drones as well as those created in cooperation with German companies.

01:17Hungary's foreign minister has reiterated Budapest's stance on peace during his twelfth

01:23visits to Moscow since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

01:28Peter Seattle, who has repeatedly visited Russia, a step that his European colleagues

01:34have avoided, met with Sergey Lavrov on Monday.

01:37Both leaders discussed the conflict in Ukraine.

01:40The visit to Moscow coincides with Hungary's rotating presidency of the European Union.

02:07In July, Prime Minister Viktor Orban traveled to Moscow and met with Vladimir Putin, sparking

02:13sharp criticism from the EU.

02:15Under Orban, Budapest has repeatedly pushed for negotiations with Moscow.

02:27French Prime Minister Michel Barnier's government is hanging on by a thread.

02:31On Monday, Barnier decided to use the controversial Article 49.3 of the French Constitution to

02:37force the adoption of next year's social security budget.

02:41In retaliation, both the left-wing coalition, the NFP and the far-right National Rally Party

02:47have announced that they will be filing separate motions to topple Barnier's government.

02:52The confidence vote could come as early as Wednesday.

02:55So what happens now?

02:57Well, either the motion is passed by the majority, bringing down the Barnier government, or it could be

03:02rejected and the social security bill will then be adopted and then sent to the Senate.

03:08However, the first option currently seems like the most plausible one, considering all four parties

03:13in the NFP coalition have declared that they will be voting this motion.

03:18That's between 180 and 192 seats.

03:22The far-right and its allies have 141 seats.

03:26If all MPs from both groups vote to topple Barnier, well, they will have more than the 289 seats necessary to do so.

03:36And if the government falls, it will be the first successful no-confidence vote since 1962,

03:43back when Charles de Gaulle was president.

03:45Sofia Katsenkova, reporting from Paris for Euronews.

03:57Pro-European parties won Sunday's parliamentary general elections in Romania,

04:02but far-right parties achieved a better score than never before, which is more than 30% of votes.

04:10One of the arguments used by the right-wing during the campaign was that

04:14Romanians are not respected by the EU and the delayed late accession of Romania and Bulgaria to the Schengen area

04:20was a proof of that.

04:23Since 2007, Romania is a member of the EU, and in January, 13 years after the beginning of the process,

04:31it finally became a full member of the free movement area.

04:37The Schengen story was actually very used by the sovereignist parties and the far-right,

04:44saying, listen, Brussels does not treat us as equal partners.

04:51And I think this also contributed to the whole general feelings against the EU.

04:57Since 2015, many member states have been temporarily closing their borders,

05:02referring to health or security reasons.

05:05The prevailing mood right now in the society is not, ha, we got it, but finally.

05:10Plus, some Romanians are kind of jokingly talking about saying that,

05:15well, right now Schengen zone is generally in trouble.

05:17A lot of countries are imposing border controls.

05:20It is now clear that Romania remains a pro-European country,

05:23despite a massive rise of anti-EU narratives that has influenced many citizens via social media.

05:29According to Globsec, 83% of Romanians support the country's EU membership,

05:33but more than 70% believe that Romania is not able to influence the EU decision mechanisms.

05:39A certain part of the Romanian population feel that they are kind of second-class citizens of the European Union.

05:46I think the battle is we are disillusioned with the West,

05:49because not everyone has benefited of our membership to the EU.

05:55You have people that are not living worse,

05:58but they don't feel that Romania has economical growth,

06:01because we have a lot of inequalities between the classes.

06:07Now is the time for negotiations in Romania to form a government.

06:11And in the meanwhile, this Sunday, citizens will vote for the second round of the presidential elections,

06:16where the ultra-nationalist anti-EU candidate Colin Djordjescu had a victory on the first round.

06:21He will face the conservative pro-European Elena Laskoni.

06:30With a walk in the park and the desire to bury the hatchet between the European Commission and the Council,

06:35this was the first working day for the new president of the European Council, Antonio Costa,

06:40and the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, who has a new team of commissioners.

06:48Their meeting with the president of the European Parliament, Roberto Mazzola,

06:51is the beginning of a solid partnership for Europe, they said.

06:57The College of Commissioners received final approval from the European Parliament last week,

07:01and Antonio Costa was elected by EU presidents and prime ministers on 27th of June.

07:08Although his team of office only began on 1st of December.

07:17Volkswagen workers have launched rolling two-hour strikes at plants across Germany

07:22in resistance to pay cuts and factory closures.

07:25Euronews correspondent Liv Stroud reports from Wolfsburg at Germany's Volkswagen headquarters.

07:30The sound of whistles and cries ring out across Wolfsburg, home to Germany's Volkswagen headquarters.

07:36Tens of thousands of VW workers across Germany have joined warning strikes on Monday morning

07:42after the company and unions failed to reach an agreement.

07:46The company plans to close at least three plants, slash tens of thousands of jobs, and cut pay by 10%.

07:53It blames the crisis on the troubled economy, rising wages, a lack of raw materials, and a slow transition to electric vehicles.

08:04With snap elections coming up in February, and the car industry very much the backbone of the German economy,

08:10it seems more than likely that Germany is going to vote for a change in leadership.

08:15Liv Stroud, in Wolfsburg, for Euronews.

08:22Thousands of workers at Germany's Volkswagen headquarters in Wolfsburg began warning strikes on Monday morning.

08:29The Works Council slammed shareholders for prioritising billions of euros profit,

08:34as workers faced job insecurity and mass layoffs.

08:59The mood in Wolfsburg is sombre, as talks between the union and VW are set to continue next Monday.

09:30What about the future of the city? What about the future of the region?

09:33What about other regions that are affected? Our children, where are they going to learn?

09:38Where are they going to work in the future? It's very depressing.

09:41Nine out of ten VW plants located across Germany joined the strike as the car company plans to shut three plants,

09:48terminate thousands of employees, and slash wages by 10% in a bid to save cash as consumer demand for cars is stuck in neutral.

09:57But declining sales are not just hitting Germany.

10:00Italy, France and Belgium are also reporting a dramatic slump in sales,

10:05which could lead to a deeper crisis within the Eurozone.

10:09Liv Stroud, in Wolfsburg, for Euronews.

10:17In a revolutionary move, Belgian sex workers are now able to sign formal employment contracts

10:22and gain labour rights on par with other professions.

10:25The new law also establishes fundamental rights for sex workers, including the right to refuse clients,

10:31choose their practices and stop an act at any moment.

10:34I think the advantages of the new law are that you can now apply for loans more easily at the bank,

10:41you can also get insurance more easily, and that the pension will also be better for us.

10:52And if you are sick, we can also get our benefits.

10:58Hoping to clamp down on abuse and exploitation within the industry,

11:02the law means sex workers will now have access to health insurance, paid leave, maternity benefits,

11:08unemployment supports and pensions.

11:13My biggest fear is that the ladies will go home faster,

11:17that they will report an absence faster,

11:20even though they don't really have anything.

11:22Of course we don't know that, we can never say.

11:26I know that happens in all sectors, but I hope that won't be the case here.

11:32Yes, I hope so.

11:35Though some countries like Germany or the Netherlands have legalized sex work,

11:39none have implemented labour protections as comprehensive as Belgium.

Latest news bulletin | December 3rd – Midday

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