BRUSSELS, March 23 (EUROPA PRESS) -

The banking turmoil caused by the bankruptcy of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) in the United States and the sale of Credit Suisse will mark the debate at the meeting of the heads of state and government of the European Union (EU) that is held this Thursday and Friday in Brussels, and that leaders will take advantage of to address the need to finalize the Banking Union and the capital markets union.

Although until now the banking authorities of the EU have insisted that there is no risk of contagion for European banks, given their resilience and the strict supervisory measures to which they are subject, and despite the fact that the point does not formally appear in the agenda, various community sources have taken it for granted that the matter will mark the discussion.

This will be the first occasion that the leaders will have to discuss face to face the situation generated after the rescue of the SVB by the US authorities, and will be attended by the president of the European Central Bank, Christine Lagarde, and the president of the Eurogroup , Paschal Donohoe, during the second day of meetings, when the euro summit will take place.

For many member states, such as Spain, these banking turbulences represent a "signal" to complete the banking union "as soon as possible", to which they hope that this summit will be able to give a boost by taking advantage of the opportunity offered by the current context.

With the debate on current economic events as a backdrop, the leaders will also address other economic issues, such as the review of fiscal rules, on which they will ask the Commission to complete the legislative process this year, as the finance ministers already did in their last meeting.

They will also address the new package to boost the industrial competitiveness of the EU that Brussels presented last week, which includes the reform of the electricity market, the law for a net zero emissions industry and the law on critical raw materials, all of them with the objective to reduce the EU's dependence on third parties, while boosting its own 'clean' industry and accelerating renewable permits.

In this sense, the role of nuclear energy in the future of the EU, which, after the proposal to reform the electricity market and the Commission's directive on renewables, faces two blocs of countries between its defenders, led by France, and those who they prefer to bet on renewables, as is the case in Spain and Germany.

Diplomatic sources have pointed out that the summit may be a "good opportunity" for the leaders to "mature" the debate on the ban on the sale of cars with combustion engines by 2035, which Berlin maintains blocked after showing last-minute reservations and which , although it is not part of the agenda, it is not ruled out that it can be dealt with in informal meetings.

The meeting of European leaders will start with a working lunch with the Secretary General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, with whom they will discuss the situation in Ukraine, especially after the agreement on grain sponsored by the UN and the arrest warrant for the Russian president. Vladimir Putin of the International Criminal Court.

Likewise, the Heads of State and Government will hold a videoconference meeting with the Ukrainian President, Volodimir Zelenski, in what will be the eighth intervention before the European Council after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, on which occasion the EU will redouble the message of political, financial and military support for Kiev.

After the Twenty-seven reached an agreement on the plan for joint purchases of artillery ammunition and missiles to replenish the reserves of European armies and guarantee sustainable supplies to Ukraine, the leaders will ratify the plan, at the expense of Hungary, which already has announced that it will not participate and is presented as the main obstacle to achieving unanimity. "We need no Member States blocking the actions of others," explained a source about this debate.

Another of the keys to the summit will be a discussion that addresses the trade relations of the European Union from a "geopolitical" vision, in light of the bloc's difficulties in getting free trade agreements with partners such as Canada out of the 'impasse' of years or Mercosur at a time when powers like China are making their way forward with concern.

It is time to reflect on the "internal dynamics" that slow down trade relations, according to diplomatic sources, for example due to the traditional resistance of France or Ireland to seal an agreement with the countries of the Southern Cone even after the change of government in Brazil, in where the arrival of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is seen by Brussels and countries like Spain as a "window of opportunity" to reactivate these talks.

In this context, the leaders are expected to reflect more broadly because, according to a senior European official, the bloc has a "general problem beyond" the pending agreements with Latin America and the leaders' meeting will be the occasion to explore solutions that allow to "invigorate" and advance in commercial relations.