Author: staff
The aggressively lobbied code of practice was released last week and is the latest step by the European Commission to limit risks posed by AI models like OpenAI’s ChatGPT or X’s Grok. It comes as Grok is under fire for spewing Hitler-praising comments and other harmful responses. At its core, the EU’s code of practice is an attempt by officials to get AI firms to follow the bloc’s rules without them having to launch full-fledged investigations. It is designed to instruct companies on how to comply with the bloc’s Artificial Intelligence Act, a binding EU law. Companies that decide not to sign up…
Published on 18/07/2025 – 16:45 GMT+2 •Updated 16:47 Five-party negotiations on the Cyprus problem concluded on Thursday without resolving key disputes. However, participants agreed to continue discussions under the guidance of the UN. The informal talks between Greek Cypriot President Nicos Christodoulides, Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar, and representatives from Greece, Turkey and the UK produced no agreement on reopening crossing points between the island’s two parts. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has scheduled additional meetings for September. “We are seeing small but significant progress, step by step, towards the major goal which is the resumption of talks and the resolution…
Kanzler Friedrich Merz stellt sich vor der Sommerpause der Hauptstadtpresse – in seiner ersten Sommerpressekonferenz seit Amtsantritt. Viel Konkretes wollte er nicht sagen. Von der Rolle als einfacher Abgeordneter bis hin zum Parteivorsitzenden – Merz laviert bei der Personaldebatte um Frauke Brosius-Gersdorf. Rixa Fürsen und Gordon Repinski analysieren, was zwischen den Zeilen mitschwang und warum Merz Merkels berühmten Satz „Wir schaffen das“ heute für gescheitert erklärt. Dazu: Einblicke in Merz’ Umgang mit Trump-Zöllen, seine Beziehung zu Ursula von der Leyen. Das Berlin Playbook als Podcast gibt es morgens um 5 Uhr. Gordon Repinski und das POLITICO-Team bringen euch jeden Morgen…
Unit 26165 also interfered with foreign assistance to Ukraine through targeting ports and transport hubs, according to the British government, while the French government has blamed the unit for cyber attacks during the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games in Paris. Another group, Unit 29155, has been accused of deploying wiper malware known as “WhisperGate” on more than 70 Ukrainian government systems in the build-up to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Sanctions announced Friday were also directed at spies who infected a phone belonging to Yulia Skripal, the daughter of former Russian spy Sergei Skripal, with malware five years before the failed…
Published on 18/07/2025 – 15:35 GMT+2 Brazil’s former President Jair Bolsonaro has been ordered to wear an ankle monitor, his press office said on Friday. The development came as federal police conducted searches at his home and his party’s headquarters in Brasília, according to people familiar with the court order. Local media reported that Bolsonaro is also barred from using social media or contacting other individuals under investigation by the Supreme Federal Court, including his son, Eduardo Bolsonaro, a Brazilian lawmaker who currently lives in the United States and is known for his close ties to US President Donald Trump. A…
India’s Commerce Ministry has set the end of July as the deadline for officials to get the trade deal signed, a person briefed on the matter told POLITICO. Two other people familiar with the developing plans, also granted anonymity to discuss preparations, said Starmer and Modi are expected to sign the deal in the U.K. before the month is out. Modi is making a “flying visit to sign the FTA so the ratification process can begin,” one of those people said. Starmer had previously been eyeing a trip to India to sign the deal. New Delhi officials have been briefing…
Supermarkets in Belgium will be allowed to stay open one hour later, until 9 p.m., and operate seven days a week, according to multiple local news reports. Currently, supermarkets, clothing and electronics stores must close at least one day per week and cannot operate after 8 p.m. (or 9 p.m. on Fridays). The Belgian government is expected to officially amend these rules on Friday, De Morgen reported. A relaxation of store regulations was agreed when the current governing coalition was formed in January. Shopkeepers will now have more flexibility to choose their work hours, but will not be required to…
By Euronews with AP Published on 18/07/2025 – 12:18 GMT+2 Syrian government forces are to deploy again to southern Syria despite pulling out under a ceasefire agreement due to renewed clashes that broke out overnight Friday between Druze armed groups and members of Bedouin clans, officials said. Government security forces agreed with some of the Druze factions that they would re-enter the area to impose stability and protect state institutions, according to two Syrian officials who spoke Friday on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak publicly. The Syrian military had largely pulled out of the Druze-majority southern province of…
The approved measures restrict Russian banks’ access to transactions, target 105 “shadow fleet” ships used to evade sanctions and ban any transactions related to the Nord Stream pipelines. Most significantly, diplomats also approved a dynamic price cap on Russian oil set 15 percent below the average market price of Russian crude, effectively lowering the cap from $60 per barrel, to about $47.6. “This decision is essential and timely, especially now, as a response to the fact that Russia has intensified the brutality of the strikes on our cities and villages,” said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The latest package of Russia…
Last month, NATO members agreed to spend five percent of their GDP on defense, including 3.5 percent on “hard defense” like weapons and troops. Berlin has pledged to reach that 3.5 percent spending target by 2029, marking the country’s most ambitious rearmament effort since the end of the Cold War. It means passing significant constitutional reforms allowing huge borrowing. Merz has met Donald Trump three times since becoming chancellor in May and told the BBC he got on well with the U.S. president. “I think President Trump is on the same page; we are trying to bring this war [in…