Author: staff
“With tensions in the Middle East at a new peak, stability must be the priority,” thundered Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, just as Trump made a loud “KA-BLAMO!” noise in the White House situation room. “The situation in the Middle East remains volatile and stability in the region is a priority,” droned Keir Starmer, as he checked to see if his WhatsApp notifications from the U.S. prez had somehow been muted. “Engaging in dialogue and securing a clear commitment from Iran to renounce nuclear weapons are essential to avoid the worst for the entire region,” Emmanuel Macron offered up,…
Published on 26/06/2025 – 19:03 GMT+2At Thursday’s EU summit in Brussels, European leaders discussed the possibility of overhauling the WTO’s institutional framework, including its stalled dispute resolution mechanisms, to better reflect the current global trade landscape.“The WTO hasn’t worked for years,” German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said in a press conference following the summit, referencing persistent dysfunction under both the Trump and Biden administrations.Commission President Ursula von der Leyen presented leaders with different options of trade deals, labelling as the most attractive a closer cooperation between the EU and members of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), a…
“Nobody is able to tolerate this humanitarian situation right now. So we need decisions. And the high representative was asked to bring initial proposals to the table and she will do it … during July and probably the [Foreign Affairs Council] will take some measures,” he went on. Kallas presented the findings of an internal review conducted at the request of 19 member countries — first obtained by POLITICO last week — that found the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu may have breached the terms of the EU-Israel Association Agreement. While backing Israel’s right to self-defense, the analysis cited…
The remarks show how the mood has changed across the bloc on the potential pact it hopes to agree with the Donald Trump administration. Brussels at first trashed the agreement that London struck with Washington, but now the EU is coming to terms with the prospect that keeping a 10 percent baseline tariff is the best it can hope for. Leaders expect an update from the European Commission over dinner on its talks with the Trump administration — just as concerns mount across the bloc that all goods might be hit with a “reciprocal” 50 percent tariff as soon as…
The EU executive said in April that Apple’s rules, which were revised last year, were in breach of the Digital Markets Act. Separately, Apple faces further scrutiny under the DMA concerning the tolls it charges on transactions conducted via the App Store. App developers will from Thursday evening face fewer limitations on how they communicate with users, according to Apple. The firm said it will reduce the number of warning labels — billed by consumer groups as “scare screens” — that users have to navigate. The company is also restructuring the commissions it tacks onto on-device transactions, another major point…
Typically in France, defendants can have their punishment temporarily lifted by appealing a verdict, when they return to being presumed innocent. But the court made the rare — though not unprecedented — decision that Le Pen’s crimes were so grave and the risk of recidivism so high that her ban should be handed down immediately. Her appeal is slated for 2026. Samson, a recent graduate of the University of Texas at Austin, according to his LinkedIn profile, is one of several young conservatives to join the ranks since Trump’s return to the White House in January. Earlier this year he wrote…
La clé des alliances La majorité sortante actuelle, emmenée par le PS, a en effet toujours refusé de s’associer aux mélenchonistes à Paris. Sur un plan stratégique, ce n’est pas sans risque, avec la nouvelle donne : “Qu’est-ce qui va se passer si LFI vire en tête dans les 18e, 19e et 20e arrondissements ?” interroge Jean-Yves Dormagen, président de Cluster 17, contacté par POLITICO. “Peuvent-ils accepter de fusionner les listes en étant derrière LFI ? S’ils ne le font pas, ils offriront le prétexte parfait à LFI pour se maintenir dans le 12e et le 14e, ce qui pourrait…
Bayrou admitted that an agreement hadn’t yet been found on how to compensate workers who have physically demanding jobs or how to fully finance the proposed tweaks, but described those issues as “solvable.” “The totality of decisions that have been the subject of at least implicit agreement are impressive,” he said. Bayrou convened the pensions meeting at the beginning of his tenure in January hoping to find agreement on fixes to a law raising the retirement age from 62 to 64 that didn’t put the system further in the red. After four months of closed-door talks failed to yield a…
“Le rôle du sommet de l’Otan était de jeter les bases de ce qui se passera ensuite”, a décrypté Camille Grand, ancien secrétaire général adjoint de l’Organisation. Faire en sorte que les 5% se concrétisent Parmi les options pour augmenter les dépenses de défense figurent la hausse des impôts, la réduction des dépenses publiques (y compris les dépenses sociales) et l’emprunt. La Commission européenne apporte son aide avec son nouveau programme de 150 milliards d’euros de prêts pour l’achat d’armes, baptisé SAFE, et son programme pour l’industrie de la défense, d’un montant plus modeste de 1,5 milliard d’euros. Le prochain…
The center-right European People’s Party (EPP), the Socialists and Democrats and liberal Renew Europe confirmed to POLITICO they will vote against any such motion. The Greens, meanwhile, are unlikely to support bringing down the Commission via a far-right motion. Iratxe García Pérez, chair of the S&D group, said: “We won’t support any extreme-right initiative.” Even The Left group lawmakers, typically critical of von der Leyen, suggested they were likely to vote against the motion. “We don’t work with the far-right groups who have been lately de facto supporting von der Leyen’s agenda and then pretending to be mad at her,”…