Author: staff
The European Parliament’s Progressive Alliance of Socialists & Democrats wants Pina Picierno, who recently quit their group, to resign from her post as Parliament vice president. “While we acknowledge that EP rules technically allow her to keep the vice-presidency, doing so would be politically incoherent,” said Andrea Maceiras, spokesperson of the S&D group’s chair, Iratxe García. Maceiras said that the positions “are the result of negotiations during the constitutive process and reflect the weight of the political groups, meaning that [Picierno] is holding a position that belongs to the S&D.”
Published on 04/06/2026 – 21:42 GMT+2•Updated 21:57 Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy proposed a face-to-face meeting with Vladimir Putin in an open letter to the Russian leader on Thursday, saying he was ready for a “full ceasefire.” The letter marks one of the few times Zelenskyy has appealed directly to Putin since Russia’s 2022 full-scale invasion and the first time he has ever sent a letter directly to the Russian leader. “The choice is yours now. Enough of war. Ukraine proposes to end this war,” Zelenskyy wrote, adding “Ukraine proposes ending this war through direct engagement between us — and you.…
Under a provision of Germany’s criminal code — which designates it an offense to insult or belittle political figures — such investigations are not uncommon, although most cases are dropped. This is not the first time Rogers has weighed in on free speech in Germany. In February, she commented on another widely reported investigation involving a retiree who wrote “Pinocchio is coming” under the very same Facebook post by Heilbronn police. According to German newspaper Tagesspiegel, prosecutors checked 38 comments for possible insults but dropped many of the cases, including that of the retiree. For some of the other defendants,…
China accused the United States on Thursday of distorting facts and smearing its political system, after Secretary of State Marco Rubio said censorship could not “erase” the memory of Beijing’s crackdown on Tiananmen Square protesters. On 4 June 1989, the Chinese government sent troops and tanks to crush protests calling for political reform in and around the central square in the capital Beijing. The death toll remains unknown and discussion of what happened is censored in mainland China. Rubio said at a news conference on Wednesday that “no amount of censorship can erase the past.” “Those who sacrificed to uphold…
This week’s social debate seems to revolve, on this occasion, around the controversy affecting the huge Spanish‑language music phenomenon. We are talking, of course, about the Casita of Benito Martínez Ocasio, Bad Bunny: a segment of his concert in which several public figures (until recently, mostly women) dance live in front of the cameras. The event has been criticised by conservative feminists such as Paula Fraga (does it objectify the women in the audience – Marta Ortega, Ester Expósito and others – who appear in it?) but defended by journalists such as Ana Requena and Alejandra Martínez. They argue that…
“Because the parties do not agree with each other, the only possible solution is a prime minister who is independent of the parties in parliament, who will succeed through individual discussions with each of these parties to lead Romania in the direction Romanians want,” Dan said on Thursday. “This means a pro-Western direction, this means preserving financial stability.” Tomac, a former historian and journalist who has advised Dan on the interests of Romanians abroad, now has 10 days to assemble a cabinet, draw up a government program, and win the backing of parliament. Tomac said he would lead a “technical…
Published on 04/06/2026 – 19:59 GMT+2 Germany’s Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt pushed back against an EU request that the country scrap internal border checks, arguing that they remain “necessary.” Speaking as EU interior ministers met in Luxembourg on Thursday to discuss the bloc’s recent migration pact, Dobrindt said his country’s border checks are “working.” “The significant number of pushback, illegal migration, the seizure of smuggling gangs, all of this shows how effective these border roles are and that is why we want to continue them,” he told journalists. “We are always flexible, always talking, always adaptable. But yes, we want…
“I was informed that it [took] more than six rounds of talks between the U.S. and the China to prepare the summits which took place between President Trump and President Xi,” he told reporters at a press conference following an OECD ministerial meeting in the French capital. “I think that we have to get to the same level of intensity of the negotiations.” The EU’s goods trade deficit with China widened to €360 billion last year from €312 billion in 2024. It expanded even more sharply in the first quarter of 2026, trade figures show. EU leaders plan to discuss how…
Just days before Armenia’s decisive elections on Sunday, the European Commission declared it was “standing firmly” in its backing of Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, stating it was preparing a support package of measures to alleviate mounting Russian economic sanctions against Yerevan due to its pro-Western, pro-EU turn. “By extending export restrictions on Armenian products, Moscow is weaponising economic relations for political pressure,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in a statement on Thursday. “We know this playbook all too well. This is why Europe stands firmly with Armenia,” von der Leyen added. Von der Leyen said the…
Accusé par le gouvernement de torpiller l’actualisation de la loi de programmation militaire au Sénat, nargué par Laurent Wauquiez et critiqué par Jean-François Copé et Xavier Bertrand… Anthony Lattier discute avec Elisa Bertholomey et Laura Kayali de la dure semaine de Bruno Retailleau, le candidat LR à la présidentielle, dans le nouvel épisode du Playbook Paris, le podcast de POLITICO.