Name: 11 European states commit to joint wind-power projects | DW News
Uploaded: 2026-01-26T17:18:32.000Z
Duration: 3 min 16 s
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Ministers from 11 European countries have signed a declaration backing unprecedented cooperation in developing wind power.

Basic passive voice

The deal was signed at the third North Sea summit taking place this year in Hamburg.

States committed to developing a series of joint offshore wind power projects in shed waters.

Leaders are seeking to reduce Europe's energy dependence on foreign countries that originally met with mainly Russia.

But now the United States under Donald Trump is increasingly seen as unreliable.

The US has become a major supplier of natural gas for Europe.

Michelle Kufner is at the summit for us in Hamburg.

What are the most interesting parts of this pact, Michelle?

Well, clearly that the countries around the North Sea are determined to make a wind energy happen that also feeds into a hydrogen drive.

And this despite the fact that it hasn't been that terribly profitable.

Only recently there was a German public bid that didn't invite any interest from the industry to run the next offshore park.

And these actually hand Donald Trump, who so spoke out about windmills, as he calls them, that they're ugly and unprofitable.

Well, he does have a point that making profit with them remains a struggle.

And here states are willing to put some money on the table and to simply make it easier, easier for this technology to come into force.

Also stressing, as the energy commissioner of the European Union, Jorgensen put it here, he himself is a Dane.

The Europeans don't want to run from one dependency into the other.

So nobody is mentioning the United States.

But becoming less dependent on Russia, everybody seems determined here must not mean becoming fully dependent on the United States, particularly as it is proving to be an unpredictable partner.

Okay, so what's the message they want to send here?

Well, that message of unity, you've heard it many times before.

This does get some headwind really here from the success that the Europeans can claim in getting Donald Trump to stand down, in threatening tariffs for those countries who support the independence of Greenland.

So verbally here, the Europeans are showing once again that they really mean it.

And as David Miliband put it, the UK Minister of Energy and net zero, as his title is called, the Europeans continue to see green energy as a way to energy independence, whereas the United States sees Bill baby drill as a formula for the future.

So that is a completely fundamental message that both countries are sending.

And here the Europeans also want to show to the industry that they mean it by making it easier for them to invest.