Author: staff

“This is not the end of our pension policy,” Merz said in a statement after the vote. “It’s only the beginning.” Earlier this week, Germany’s far-left Die Linke (The Left) party announced its lawmakers would abstain from the vote, effectively ensuring its passage by reducing the overall number of votes needed to pass the pension legislation. Still, Merz continued to try to secure the support of young conservatives in order to avoid the politically damaging impression that his coalition was dependent on indirect far-left support to get the package over the line. Ultimately, only seven members of Merz’s conservative bloc…

He called her “beautiful”, and she didn’t appear to mind. Perhaps neither did the Italians. It’s not a secret that Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and US President Donald Trump enjoy a fairly close relationship, as far as European leaders go. That might also explain why Italy emerged as one of the countries with the most favourable view of the US head of state, according to the latest such YouGov poll. “Favourable”, though, is relative here, as the percentage of Italians holding a positive view is only 28%. Italy’s result even outperforms Trump’s popularity among the US’s historical allies in the…

France’s First Lady Brigitte Macron visited a panda breeding research center in Chengdu on Friday, the final day of the fourth state visit of President Emmanuel Macron to China. Earlier, the couple toured the Dujiangyan dam alongside China’s President Xi Jinping and his wife, Peng Liyuan. The president later met with students while Brigitte Macron continued her program. The visit followed the signing of multiple bilateral agreements and discussions on trade and Ukraine peace in Beijing, with Macron accompanied by leading French business figures.

Published on 05/12/2025 – 15:30 GMT+1 France could soon implement a new cruise ship tax for foreign visitors, which would require cruise ship travellers to shell out €15 per person for each French port call. It’s estimated that the levy could bring in around €75 million a year, which could be used to conserve the country’s vulnerable coastal areas. Cruise travel to France has continued to increase exponentially in the last few years. Mainland France saw an estimated more than 3.8 million cruise passengers pass through in 2023, according to the French government tourism agency, Atout France. When could France’s…

The art of cinema allows us to confront the most horrific tragedies of our world, both past and present. Over the last decades, many films have chronicled the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. But when it comes to Israel’s current war on the Palestinian people of Gaza, fiction has yet to catch up with reality. One reason for that is possibly the restricted timeframe. It has been a little over two years since Israel launched its campaign of relentless assaults against the Gaza Strip in the aftermath of the October 7 attacks. Making a film can however take much longer than that. Another…

In response to a question from POLITICO, Farage said Ukraine had been offered a bad deal under which it would be forced to accept limits to the size of its military that would usually apply only to a country that had signed an “unconditional surrender.”  Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s position is in doubt amid a corruption scandal, Farage said. But Kyiv could not “give up territory they’ve lost tens of thousands of lives defending,” he said. “So the deal as it is at the moment doesn’t work and can’t stand.”  Farage emphasized that his comment was not a criticism of…

France’s President Emmanuel Macron has found himself at the heart of a politicised spat after his proposal to certify trustworthy media outlets with “labels” was distorted by media commentators and politicians, leading him to be accused of promoting autocracy. In one stark example, on 30 November, the Journal du Dimanche — owned by media mogul Vincent Bolloré — published a front page story claiming that Macron was seeking to “control the media”. In an editorial segment aired on 1 December, right-wing political commentator Pascal Praud, who works for CNews and Europe 1 — outlets also owned by Bolloré — jumped…

The European Union began simplifying visa procedures for Kazakh citizens following talks at the EU-Kazakhstan Cooperation Council in Brussels, a pledge Council President António Costa affirmed during his first official visit to Kazakhstan on Thursday. “I know very well how these talks matter deeply to both Kazakh and European citizens,” Costa said in Astana. “When concluded, this agreement will make it easier for our people to meet, study, work and invest, a real sign of the friendship between our peoples.” Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev also welcomed the agreement, noting that increased mobility will facilitate cooperation in education, science, cultural exchanges…

Overlapping tropical storms and “intensified” monsoon systems have unleashed widespread devastation across Asia, with rescue teams still racing to reach isolated survivors. Days of record-breaking rainfall and storm surges triggered catastrophic flooding and landslides in Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia and Vietnam last week. With thousands of homes destroyed and roads rapidly transforming into fast-flowing rivers of mud, people have been found clinging to rooftops or trees to stay alive. The death toll has now surpassed 1,600, but hundreds are still unaccounted for across the region. According to the UN, the disaster is one of the deadliest weather patterns south…

Protests are being held in around 90 towns and cities across Germany. According to Berlin police, around 800 people gathered to protest the reform in the morning, with several thousand expected in Germany’s capital by the end of the day. The initiative behind the protest, Schulstreik gegen Wehrpflicht (school strike against conscription), said on its website: “Politicians [and] Bundeswehr … argue how we should reintroduce conscription. But no one talks to us. No one asks us what we want.” Martin, a high school student from a town in Brandenburg, the state surrounding Berlin, was among the students who skipped school to object. “Why resolve wars by arming…