Author: staff

Zu diesem 80. Jahrestag der Gründung der Vereinten Nationen hört ihr einen Spaziergang durch die UN  und durch das politische Leben von Annalena Baerbock.In ihrer neuen Rolle als Präsidentin der UN-Generalversammlung spricht die frühere grüne Außenministerin über Macht, Reformen und die Frage, warum die Weltorganisation gerade jetzt gebraucht wird.  Baerbock erzählt, wie sie in New York direkt in die High-Level-Week geworfen wurde, was sie an Boutros Boutros-Ghali erinnert und warum sie Diplomatie als tägliche Arbeit gegen die Hölle versteht.Im Gespräch mit Gordon Repinski geht es um Kriege, Krisen und Kommunikation: Baerbock erklärt, warum Social Media für sie politische Aufklärung ist,…

Liz Truss is never far from the shores of the United States, hobnobbing with the folk seeking to “Make America Great Again.” What does she think Britain can learn from the second Trump era? Anne McElvoy travels to Washington to talk to the former Conservative Prime Minister Liz Truss, who’s on a self-proclaimed “mission” to remake the U.K. in the image of MAGA-land. It’s exactly three years since she left Downing Street after just 49 days in office following a mini-budget that sent the markets into freefall — and has haunted  her party ever since. In a wide-ranging interview, Truss…

France has been in the throes of heightened political instability for the last two years, cycling through no fewer than five prime ministers. Lecornu’s predecessor, François Bayrou, was toppled in September over his plans to squeeze the 2026 budget by €43.8 billion, and Lecornu himself was forced to resign earlier this month just 14 hours after naming his government. President Emmanuel Macron reappointed him to the job days later.   Lecornu has put forward a budget for next year that includes €30 billion worth of savings and could narrow the deficit to 4.7 percent of GDP. But getting it approved will…

A Connolly victory shouldn’t be a surprise, given how Ireland’s presidency has evolved in the public mind since civil rights lawyer Mary Robinson’s trailblazing win in 1990. Once a sinecure for senior statesmen backed by the dominant Fianna Fáil party, Robinson’s breakthrough augured in a new era of presidents coming from the opposition benches or outside political ranks. That reflects many voters’ apparent preference today for a presidency — a largely ceremonial post with no role in day-to-day government — that can challenge the establishment and, more specifically, the current Fianna Fáil-led coalition. Should she win, Connolly will succeed another…

“It’s a bit sour for me that we are finger-pointed, now, as the unwilling country,” De Wever told reporters. He described the idea of Belgian taxpayers ending up on the hook as “completely insane.” Donald Trump’s ambiguous attitude to how to deal with Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, despite this week sanctioning Russia’s two biggest oil companies, has put the onus on Europe to bolster its support. While Europe’s governments and the European Central Bank long considered unthinkable using Russian assets to arm and rebuild Ukraine over fears it would break international law, it emerged as a real prospect in the…

Ahead of the summit, which touched on climate targets, the housing crisis and defense as well as the assets issue, POLITICO said De Wever, Slovakia’s Robert Fico, Hungary’s Viktor Orbán and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz were likely to be the biggest thorns in the EU side. As it turned out, De Wever was the only one who really followed through on his threats. He forced his fellow leaders to water down their language on assets and push any decision to December. “I’m not a bad boy, we’re best boy in town,” he said. “If you talk about immobilized assets, we’re the…

Beim EU-Gipfel trifft Friedrich Merz auf die Realität europäischer Politik und auf die Blockade des belgischen Premiers Bart De Wever. Der Streit um die Nutzung eingefrorener russischer Staatsvermögen für einen 140-Milliarden-Euro-Kredit an die Ukraine bringt die Verhandlungen ins Wanken. Hans von der Burchard berichtet über Druck, Deals und womögliche diplomatische Nachtschichten. 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 bietet jeden Morgen die wichtigsten Themen und Einordnungen. Jetzt kostenlos abonnieren. Mehr von Host und POLITICO Executive Editor Gordon…

But the degree program is not the only reason for listing the rector, Nikita Anisimov. Already in 2023 — a year into Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine — Anisimov announced his university would fund the education of Russian soldiers partaking in the war, the EU’s legal documents state. The symbolic move, published Thursday after EU leaders had agreed on the 19th package of sanctions on Russia, freezes Anisimov’s assets in Europe, if indeed he has any. This week also saw the U.S. move to impose the first new sanctions on Russia since Donald Trump took office as president back in…

The eventual conclusions were agreed unchanged from the draft text prepared by diplomats this week — though few countries were entirely satisfied with the outcome. “Classic balance, everyone equally unhappy,” one diplomat said. Members of several governments were left wondering what difference the agreement would make for the 2040 climate target. Ministers had postponed their vote on the new goal in September, after some of the EU’s largest countries refused to approve the law without their leaders having a say. But the text agreed Thursday is deliberately vague, and stops short of endorsing the 2040 goal. That target, as proposed by…

Ukraine and Russia have dominated today’s talks, with Belgium playing hardball on the EU’s plan to use frozen Russian assets for a €140 billion loan for Ukraine. Belgium, which holds most of the assets, fears legal and financial retaliation from Moscow and wants others to share the risk. After drawn-out and complex talks, the country’s leader, Bart De Wever, agreed to wording that delays a decision. Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told leaders that Kyiv would prioritize domestic and European industry when spending money from the loan — but insisted on being able to buy American if needed. Leaders finished…