Author: staff

But first, some breaking news: The EU’s foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas has just told Europe Today that the US-Russia diesel deal is a “gift to Putin”, while defending Ukraine’s right to hit Russian oil refineries. “The core issue is that Russia should stop this war,” Kallas said. “If we look at the big picture, the majority of the financing of this war comes from oil.” Asked by our EU editor Maria Tadeo if Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was right in saying that he would continue strikes on Russian oil refineries, Kallas said: “Yes, if we look at international law,…

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz — the unofficial leader of the frugal camp — said that the Irish proposal has achieved progress despite reductions still being needed, said two EU diplomats briefed on the discussions. He pointed to EU payouts to poorer regions, as opposed to farmer’s subsidies, as an avenue for cuts. On the other side of the spectrum, Spanish Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez — who will try to cling on to power in an election on Nov. 29 — insisted that the budget is way too small. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez addresses journalists upon arriving at the…

Published on 15/10/2026 – 20:57 GMT+2 The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) has asked a judge to order US President Donald Trump to set a firm date to give sworn testimony in his $10-billion (€8.6 billion) defamation lawsuit against the network, court filings showed. “Nearly eight months into discovery, after seven depositions of BBC witnesses, and with only two months of discovery remaining, the BBC still has not been able to depose, and does not even have a schedule to depose, the most central figure in this case: Plaintiff himself,” the BBC’s lawyers wrote. The BBC’s lawyers asked a federal court…

Catch up with the most important stories from around Europe and beyond in this Euronews news bulletin. In just a few minutes, our newsroom brings you the latest news and breaking news across world affairs, business, politics, culture, entertainment and travel, with the context you need to make sense of a fast-moving day. Reported with the independence and the European perspective that define Euronews, this regular round-up gives you a clear and reliable overview of the stories shaping our world right now, wherever you are watching from.

The showdown over the Emissions Trading System — both the current one, and the second iteration which is already legislated and will put a carbon price on heating and transport from 2028 — became so bogged down it forced Costa to cancel the summit’s planned press conference and delay further talks until after dinner, because they had become a “mess,” three EU diplomats told POLITICO. With German Chancellor Friedrich Merz incensed by what Berlin saw as Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s intransigence, fiery negotiations pitted a coalition made up of Germany, Spain, France, Portugal, the Nordics and the Netherlands against a stubborn…

EU leaders have refused to budge on the bloc’s next long-term budget and openly cast doubt on whether a deal can be sealed by the end of the year, a slippage that would mean significant delays and a collision with a string of national elections. Until now, capitals were committed to reaching a final agreement by December 2026. But at Thursday’s summit in Brussels, where talks dragged longer than expected, a growing number of governments are asking whether that is really necessary. “We are not reaching an agreement this month. Not next month. I don’t know even if it’s possible…

Demonstrators carried banners, wore masks depicting world leaders and pulled giant floats, including a piggy bank and an octopus symbolising global capitalism. They accused the financial institutions of making decisions that affect local communities without giving residents a meaningful say. Police blocked the march near the meeting venue, while brief scuffles broke out as protesters tried to hang a banner from a pedestrian bridge. Protesters from across Thailand gathered to voice their concerns, rejecting the official forum as a platform where ordinary people would have little influence. They used a giant octopus to symbolise powerful economic interests tightening their grip…

Documents detailing November plans to revamp the bloc’s gas security architecture, seen earlier this year by POLITICO, include plans to encourage better crisis management by companies. However, they stop short of explicitly endorsing strategic reserves that governments would have to fill to a set level to offset supply shortages, regardless of market conditions. Countries that typically rely on commercial refilling have already been forced to change tack this year as the limits of the existing model became clear. The Netherlands has moved to subsidize energy purchases, costing it almost €1 billion, while Germany is exploring whether to develop its own…

Thick smoke from wildfires in Indonesia turned the skies over Palangkaraya a striking yellow and orange on Thursday 15 October, reducing visibility to just a few dozen metres. Aerial footage shows the capital of Central Kalimantan province almost disappearing beneath the haze, with the Talawang roundabout and a nearby statue barely visible. Hundreds of kilometres away, Singapore was also blanketed in smoke, leaving its iconic Marina Bay Sands complex almost indistinguishable against the skyline. Roads, bridges and passing vehicles were shrouded in the dense haze. The pollution comes from fires that have been burning across Indonesia for months, sending vast…

Earlier this week, French President Emmanuel Macron had suggested the ball was in the German court. “There are political constraints on the other side of the Rhine, and I completely respect coalition discussions,” Macron said Monday on the sidelines of the Paris car show. Under the terms of the proposed deal, Germany would accept stricter Made in Europe criteria for the automotive sector in the Industrial Accelerator Act, which France has pushed for, in exchange for weakening the combustion engine ban, one of Berlin’s long-term demands. “In light of the significant technological, economic and geopolitical changes since the existing regulatory…