Author: staff
Trump said he believes ending Russian oil purchases, combined with the imposition of tariffs on China of 50 percent to 100 percent — by NATO members and the U.S. — would help bring an end to what he called a “ridiculous war.” Trump, promised in his election campaign that he would end the war within a day, concluded his statement Saturday by saying that if NATO followed his plan, the war would “end quickly.” Just this week, several European leaders were confident that they had convinced Trump that Russian President Vladimir Putin is not interested in ending the war and has to…
Mutlu is the latest in a string of opposition officials to be arrested in recent months in a clampdown on opposition to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. In August, İnan Güney, the mayor of Istanbul’s Beyoğlu district was taken into custody for alleged corruption. In March, Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu — Erdogan’s top political rival — was sent to prison on charges of corruption and aiding a terrorist group, despite massive protests. A new trial against him began on Friday, where İmamoğlu faces charges of falsifying his university degree. Mutlu, Güney and İmamoğlu are all members of Turkey’s largest opposition party, the social…
Fitch Ratings lowered France’s credit score on Friday, citing mounting political instability and uncertainty over how the government will rein in ballooning public finances. The US-based agency cut France’s rating from “AA-” to “A+,” warning that the country’s already-heavy debt burden is set to keep rising until at least 2027 without decisive action. In its report, the US-headquartered agency said that the turmoil caused by the successive falls of government since the snap parliamentary elections in 2024 had weakened the country’s ability to implement “far-reaching fiscal consolidation”, and that it was unlikely to reduce the public deficit to below 3%…
Updated: 13/09/2025 – 12:00 GMT+2 Catch up with the most important stories from around Europe and beyond this September 13th, 2025 – latest news, breaking news, World, Business, Entertainment, Politics, Culture, Travel. … More
By Sarvinoz Ibrokhimova Published on 13/09/2025 – 10:58 GMT+2 When Ernest Hemingway was writing “The Old Man and the Sea”, he probably never imagined that maybe one day his book would become a way for a prisoner to shave three days off their jail time. But now, an inmate in an Uzbek prison can reducing their sentence, after proving to a special committee that they have read the world famous book. The country’s senate has approved a law that allows detainees to shorten their sentences by reading. But there are certain rules: For every approved book completed, a prisoner may reduce…
Poland published detailed explanations of the disinformation it had identified being spread on social media and news channels — exposing how Russia coupled a disinformation campaign with its physical intrusions into NATO territory, and the subsequent fallout. Some of the identified narratives included that Ukraine allowed the drones to pass into Polish airspace to drag Poland into the war, the incident was a “theater” orchestrated by Kyiv and Warsaw, that Belarus warned Poland of the incoming drones and even that the Polish army was preparing to attack Belarus. The aim of the disinformation, Poland said, was to redirect responsibility for…
According to four officials briefed on the matter, Commission representatives proposed the idea to deputy finance ministers behind closed doors in Brussels on Thursday. The proposition received cautious enthusiasm, but no agreements or commitments were made. One official said a formal proposal could come soon. Almost €200 billion in Russian assets were frozen in the aftermath of Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Most of the assets are held by Euroclear, a financial institution based in Brussels. With Ukraine facing an estimated €8 billion budget shortfall next year, EU countries are discussing new ideas to continue financing the…
The downgrade comes as France is going through a political crisis and is struggling to cut its massive public debt. On Tuesday, French President Emmanuel Macron appointed Sébastien Lecornu as prime minister after his predecessor, François Bayrou, was toppled a day earlier in a confidence vote over the €43.8 billion budget squeeze he proposed for next year. “We expect the run-up to the presidential election in 2027 will further limit the scope for fiscal consolidation in the near term and see a high likelihood that the political deadlock continues beyond the election,” the agency said. If Fitch’s downgrade is followed…
Published on 13/09/2025 – 7:00 GMT+2 Germany’s Oktoberfest is a celebrated historic event that draws more than six million visitors each year. The 2025 edition of the beer festival will take place from 22 September to 5 October in cities throughout the country. Munich’s Oktoberfest remains the more traditional version, with large beer tents, events like the Costume and Hunters Parade, Bavarian music and beer served from six breweries in the city. Berlin’s Oktoberfest offers much of the same festive atmosphere but on a smaller scale, with outdoor beer gardens in locations like Zentraler Festplatz and Alexanderplatz, live brass bands,…
Published on 13/09/2025 – 7:00 GMT+2 Did you watch the speech? Striking an alarmist tone, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen spoke for over an hour in the European Parliament this Wednesday. From a drone alliance with Ukraine to a European Affordable Housing Plan, she expressed her ‘wish list’ for Europe opening with the phrase – “Europe is in a fight”. Andrea Wechsler, the German conservative MEP, Barry Andrews, the Irish liberal and Robert Biedron the Polish socialist followed the speech from inside the hemicycle and felt the substance was right but must be followed with concrete steps. “I…