Navi Pillay has begun giving a press conference after the declaration that she has won this year’s Nobel Peace prize. She began by saying she dedicates the award to “survivors of international crimes”.
She called on people to stand together in the defence of rule of law.
Senior correspondent
Maroš Šefčovič has just revealed that the deal with China could reduce sales of Chinese plug-in hybrid cars by “several million” in the next four years.
“There are different techniques on how you can do these things,” he said without revealing the details.
He said he wanted to first present the plan to EU leaders – he will brief ambassadors on Sunday morning ahead of a leaders summit on Thursday.
Senior correspondent
The EU says it has reached a landmark deal with China to “moderate” sales of Chinese hybrid electric cars in the EU.
It is global first, EU’s trade commissioner Maroš Šefčovič told reporters.
The deal “opens the prospect of cutting China’s export [of hybrids] by more than a half”.
“It is the first time that China has accepted to moderate its exports without going through the prior” trade investigations, said Šefčovič at a press conference in Beijing just now.
Šefčovič said the deal on hybrid cars was “very, very hard to accomplish these results”.
“This is the result of very intense, work. And it reflects also the appreciation of the situation on both sides. The European car industry is under a lot of stress. And therefore this step was, absolutely crucial. But I think that what we agreed is fair, we, are working in a full compliance, with, WTO, methodology,” he has just told reporters.
China has reached an “understanding” with the EU, to avert deterioration in trade tensions after two days of talks in Beijing, according to a Chinese statement.
EU trade commissioner Maroš Šefčovič is due to hold a press conference around 3pm CET, but China says the two sides have agreed a 16 point agreement allowing for a relaxation of restrictions on rare earth exports from China to the EU in return for concessions on electric vehicle exports.
China is “willing… to continue facilitating the approval of export licenses for rare earths and permanent magnets destined for the EU”, a statement from the Chinese ministry of commerce has said following two days of talks in Beijing.
While they acknowledged “differences” between them, the two sides were committed to maintaining trade and to hold a further meeting in March.
China said both sides would adhere to “procedures concerning company price undertakings” of hybrid cars, Beijing’s commerce ministry said, citing a joint statement, suggesting a deal to find minimum prices for hybrid cars exported to the EU.
The talks follow months of rising tensions between the 27-nation EU and the Asian powerhouse that threatened to escalate into a trade war.
Maroš Šefčovič said earlier in the day that the EU’s trade deficit with running at around £1bn a day (€1.18bn) every day was “unsustainable”.
Let’s take a quick look at other news.
UN secretary general António Guterres is the latest to offer his congratulations to Pillay.
In a statement, he said:
“Warm congratulations to Navi Pillay on being awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
From her work in South Africa defending Nelson Mandela & others, to her role as an international judge on cases relating to international crimes, including the genocide in Rwanda, to her tenure as High Commissioner for Human Rights, to chairing the @UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, she has shown that the force of law must prevail over the law of force and that defending human rights is the surest safeguard against injustice.
Today’s prize is a tribute to all those working to uphold & defend international law, the rule of law & human rights, and secure peace, justice & human dignity.”
Our video team have put together these clips of Navi Pillay’s reaction this morning to finding out that she had been awarded the Nobel peace price.
Reuters is carrying a few more of Navi Pillay’s words upon her receipt of the Nobel peace prize. It quotes her warning that mounting political attacks on international law risked returning the world to a system in which “power rather than law determines whose suffering matters.”
She continued:
This award strengthens my conviction that we must stand together in defence of the rule of law, in defence of independent courts, and an international legal order based on principle.
Navi Pillay has said that she hopes world leaders will take note of her award, and it will remind them that they have a legal obligation to uphold human rights. She said it was wrong that states where attacking the institute of the international criminal court.
Navi Pillay has begun giving a press conference after the declaration that she has won this year’s Nobel Peace prize. She began by saying she dedicates the award to “survivors of international crimes”.
She called on people to stand together in the defence of rule of law.
For what its worth, the Nobel Committee was also asked about the question of Gaza earlier – and said it was not taking a stance on whether Israel is committing genocide in Gaza.
“It’s her report, the Commission’s report, and of course we have great faith in her professionalism, in her integrity, but that work is of a UN inquiry commission,” Jørgen Watne Frydnes, the chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, told AFP when asked to comment.
He said it was up to international courts to rule on the issue, stressing that the Nobel Committee “is not the court”.
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