00:01The EU must spend more upfront to protect itself from increasingly severe climate disasters,
00:08European Union Climate Action Commissioner Wubke Huckstra told Euronews Programme Europe Today.
00:14He argued that paying for fires, floods and other damage after the strike will ultimately cost far more.
00:21He also pushed back against attempts to frame climate action and economic competitiveness as competing priorities.
00:28Huckstra's preferred formula combines climate action, competitiveness and European independence.
00:35It is imperative that we marry, bridge climate action with competitiveness and with independence.
00:42What do I mean by that? You know, fully continue with climate action, making sure that we also enhance the
00:49competitiveness in Europe.
00:51We see that for example in Finland, Denmark and Sweden that is working very well.
00:56And we marry this to independence because we don't want to outsource this transition to the Chinese.
01:03Regarding China, Huckstra insisted on continuing the green transition while reducing Europe's dependence on Chinese clean technologies.
01:11Furthermore, in the Commissioners' view, China is not complying with the rules.
01:15It has been China that has been flooding Europe for years with heavily state-subsidized projects.
01:23It has been China that has been using critical raw materials as choking points.
01:28It has been China that has not been playing by the rules of international trade.
01:34So we have no alternative to make sure that we level these things out and we do respond.
01:40Huckstra stressed that in the long term, a successful climate transition will boost the EU's economy sovereignty.
01:48His proposed escape route includes more nuclear, solar and wind combined with electrification and more European energy production.
01:59Huckstra stressed that in the air is very efficient of developing information.
02:01This is the drug system.
