Author: staff
People clinging to tree tops to stay alive, thousands of homes crumbling, and roads rapidly transforming into rivers of mud. These haunting images are not a dystopian prediction of what is to come: they are the reality of extreme weather that has gripped the world in a deadly chokehold. In Europe, flash floods, deadly heatwaves, droughts and record-breaking wildfires became the defining feature of 2025 – a legacy it is still scrambling to recover from. But experts warn these events will likely become the “new normal” unless drastic action is taken to reduce heat-trapping emissions being released into the atmosphere.…
And the second was the war in Ukraine, which dragged into its fourth, bloody year and — together with Trump’s return to the White House — forced Europe’s leaders to make hard choices about the EU’s security, agency and destiny. The collision of the two, a paradigm-shattering American president, and the grim reality on Ukraine’s battlefield dominated the year’s news. And POLITICO was there for every consequential speech, summit, and Oval Office spat. Without further ado, here are our 20 most-read stories of 2025. 20. Europe thinks the unthinkable: Retaliating against Russia As the Kremlin launched a wave of hybrid attacks against EU member countries, from menacing fighter jet incursions to mysterious drone sightings, POLITICO asked: What would it take for Europe to finally hit back? Read the story
“In prison, there is nothing to see, and nothing to do.” So said Nicolas Sarkozy, one-time president of France. You’d imagine, based on that sentence, that he wouldn’t have enough material to write a book about his time in prison but you’d be very wrong. “Nicolas Sarkozy, The Journal of a Prisoner” is 216 pages long. As Sarkozy spent 20 days behind bars, that means each day gets a whopping 11 pages of, well, nothingness. Sarko, 70, was imprisoned after being found guilty of allowing a “close collaborator” and “unofficial intermediaries” to try to obtain funding from Moammar Gadhafi’s regime in Libya…
Wer regiert die Welt – und was treibt sie an? In unserem regelmäßigen Machthaber-Spezial geht es um die mächtigsten und umstrittensten Politikerinnen und Politiker unserer Zeit. Wir zeigen, wie sie denken, entscheiden – und was das für uns bedeutet. Eine Politikerin oder Politiker, alle zwei Wochen, ein Blick hinter die Kulissen der Macht. Die nächste Folge hört ihr am Montag, 29.12.2025 mit einem Porträt des polnischen Ministerpräsidenten Donald Tusk. Das Berlin Playbook als Podcast gibt es jeden Morgen ab 5 Uhr. Gordon Repinski und das POLITICO-Team liefern Politik zum Hören – kompakt, international, hintergründig. Für alle Hauptstadt-Profis: Der Berlin Playbook-Newsletter…
But if the country fails to form a government again, Kosovo risks losing access to the bloc’s €6 billion Growth Plan for the Western Balkans, as it needs to deliver reforms to unlock the funding. “Kosovo already faces an uphill battle because of five non-recognizer [EU] states, and the country cannot afford another year lost to the politicians’ inability to do what they were elected for — provide solutions, not create problems,” said Besar Gërgi, an expert in European integration at the Group for Legal and Political Studies, a Kosovo think tank. Cyprus, Slovakia, Spain, Greece and Romania do not…
Another strong storm moved into Southern California on Thursday, following earlier weather systems that brought heavy rain and gusty winds to the region. Forecasters warned that more rain could worsen flooding and trigger mudslides. The risk remains high in areas burned by wildfires in January. Hillsides stripped of vegetation absorb less water, making debris flows more likely. Officials urged residents in vulnerable zones to stay alert as rain fell on already soaked ground. In Wrightwood, a mountain town northeast of Los Angeles, flooding hit as firefighters issued evacuation warnings on Christmas Eve.
Published on 26/12/2025 – 10:07 GMT+1 •Updated 16:16 Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Friday that he will meet with US President Donald Trump in Florida on Sunday, the next step in ongoing talks to end Russia’s nearly four-year war in Ukraine. Zelenskyy told journalists that the two leaders will discuss security guarantees for Ukraine during the weekend talks, and that the 20-point plan under discussion “is about 90% ready.” Earlier on Friday, the Ukrainian president said a meeting with Trump would happen “in the near future.” “We are not losing a single day. We have agreed on a meeting at…
A man was arrested on Friday after a violent attack at a rubber factory in central Japan, where eight people were stabbed and others were injured by a chemical believed to be bleach. The incident took place at the Yokohama Rubber Company plant in Mishima, in Shizuoka prefecture. Emergency services said eight victims were taken to hospital with knife wounds. Five of them were reported to be in serious condition. The Fujisan Nanto Fire Department said further medical details were not immediately available. Shizuoka prefectural police said the suspect, a 38-year-old man, was arrested at the factory on suspicion of…
Published on 26/12/2025 – 20:09 GMT+1 Three women were stabbed on the Paris metro on Friday, the suspected attacker has been arrested, the prosecutor’s office announced. The assaults took place in three metro stations, and a man was arrested in the Paris region. Around 4 pm, a man “attacked three women with a knife on metro line 3, successively at the République, Arts et Métiers, and Opéra stations,” a prosecutor said to French media. He was identified using CCTV footage and geolocation data from his mobile phone, the same source specified. The Parisian public transport operator, RTAP, said that firefighters…
By Euronews Published on 26/12/2025 – 15:08 GMT+1 •Updated 16:30 A Palestinian man killed two Israelis in a car-ramming and stabbing attack in northern Israel on Friday, authorities said. The assault began Friday afternoon in Beit She’an, where the attacker drove into pedestrians, killing a 68-year-old man and injuring a teenage boy. He then drove onto a highway and fatally stabbed a 19-year-old woman and injured another person as he headed towards the nearby city of Afula, police said. Paramedics declared both victims dead at the scene. The two victims have been identified as 19-year-old Aviv Maor from Kibbutz Ein Harod,…